William Faulkner, one of the most prolific American writers of the 20th century, examines various themes including race, gender, socioeconomic tensions, the Southern landscape, and the modernist viewpoint of space and time. However, one of Faulkner's most poignant themes woven through each of his works is family, specifically the dysfunctional family unit. In fact, Faulkner uses genealogies and complex family lineage as a metaphor for the ultimate dysfunctional family unit of America and the fratricide between brothers during the Civil War.
