Faulkner in the 21st Century 

   Whether the year 2000 signalled the end of one century or the beginning of another, it seemed appropriate that the 27th annual Faulkner and Yoknapatawpha Conference should turn itself toward the future: what lies ahead in the reading of Faulkner? The hope for “Faulkner in the 21st Century”July 23-28, 2000 was to open new possibilities as well as engage in some creative retrospect, offering new ways of reading Faulkner as well as reexamining some of the traditional ways we have read him. On the one hand to determine how the very conditions of the new century may have an impact on how we receive Faulkner--that is, to see how readings may change because the situation and needs of readers change. And on the other hand to continue to respond to the inherent power of the texts--assuming there is a power independent of our situation as readers--to try to see what may be there that we have not seen, to find the Faulkner that is not so much behind us as out in front, waiting for us to catch up with him. 

   Among the papers attempting to widen the contexts of our reading Faulkner were those by Deborah N. Cohn and Barbara Ladd, exploring Spanish American and Creole history and literature as a way of identifying not only influence but parallel concerns; Annette Trefzer, examining some of Faulkner’s Native American stories in terms of such issues as the destruction of the land, slavery, and colonialism; and Theresa Towner, considering the many characters that constitute the “marginality” of Faulkner’s fiction.

   Some themes looked familiar enough: the past, repetition, memory, the frontier, race, discussed in papers by Leigh Ann Duck, Patrick O’Donnell, Robert W. Hamblin, and Walter Benn Michaels--although always with an awareness of how our readings of these topics shift in accordance with present concerns. At one end, there was Michael Kreyling’s reading of late Faulkner as an attempt to get out from under the weight of contemporary criticism, as if to establish a “Faulkner” still to be read, and at the other, Karl Zender’s return to the Lucas Beauchamp of Go Down, Moses as the image of an African American who always had more choices than a skeptical current criticism has been willing to allow.

   In addition to the formal papers, Oxford writer Larry Brown gave a reading from his fiction; the Forrest Brothers, a gospel choir from Winona, Mississippi, sang a selection of songs; Ross Spears presented and discussed the making of his film, Tell about the South: 1915-1940; Catherine Dupree read her winning entry in the 11th annual Faux Faulkner Contest, “Delta Drive-Thru”; and

Colby Kullman moderated the first “Faulkner on the Fringe” open‑mike session at Milly Moorhead’s Southside Gallery. Other events included presentations by members of Faulkner’s family and friends, guided tours of North Mississippi, and a closing party at the home of Will and Patty Lewis. A highlight of the conference continued to be the special “Teaching Faulkner”

sessions conducted by James B. Carothers, Robert W. Hamblin, Arlie E. Herron, and Charles A. Peek.

   For the second year, 30 high‑school teachers, the recipients of fellowships funded by a grant from Saks Incorporated, on behalf of McRae’s, Profitt’s, and Parisian Department Stores, attended the conference. Also attending were an Elderhostel group led by Carolyn Vance Smith and an Interhostel group led by Lynne Geller.

   Judging from the reception of the registrants Faulkner’s future for the moment looks secure, even if, as the papers insisted, the reasons keep changing.

Donald M. Kartiganer