Symbolic Interpretations of Weather in William Faulkner’s South

Abstract

This paper aims to explore how the American South is translated into weather images in Faulkner’s three novels, Light in August, As I Lay Dying and Absalom, Absalom! set in the fic­tional Yoknapatawpha County. Inspired by the American South, Faulkner’s work integrates regional geography and family history. The study highlights how weather elements, integral to local geography, symbolize aspects of Southern family life within its socio-cultural and his­torical context. For the analysis, which aims to reveal the significance of weather imagery in portraying Southern realities and its broader implications in Faulkner’s regionalist narrative, the paper uses Adamson’s concept of regionalism, which encompasses geographical, historical, and socio-cultural elements.