Geri Davis
Mrs. Williams
English 101
6 August 2015
The Mothers Effect of the Outcome of the Protagonist of These Two Stories
As President Abraham Lincoln’s once said, “All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother”. In the writings of James Joyce’s “Eveline” and William Faulkner’s “Barn Burning”, one might see the hidden influences of their mothers. Sarty and Eveline are two very different characters from very different settings but, they are searching for a life of their own, wanting to gain their own independence and transitioning into adulthood. Even though Eveline’s mother was not alive during the time frame of the story and Sarty’s mother was a quiet character in that story, they have a strong influence in their life choices. Both protagonists find themselves struggling with critical decisions to make between their own interests and wellbeing and their loyalty to an undeserving parent.
Both writers depict young children making life changing decisions under challenging circumstances and growing up in difficult childhoods. Eveline grew up rather normally, playing in a field with the neighborhood kids, a father who was not always the most pleasant to be around and a mother who loved her dearly. “Her father was not so bad then; and besides her mother was alive” (513). It seems that Eveline had to take on a lot more responsibilities at a young age, after her mother passed away. She was doing most of the chores around the house, cooking and cleaning. She even had a job to help the family financially. Sarty grew up moving from town to town, living a share cropper meagerly life. As Faulkner describes, “The wagon stopped before a paintless two-room house identical almost with the dozen others it had stopped before even in the boy’s ten years, and again, as on the other dozen occasions” (483).
The main conflict in the lives of Eveline and Sarty is caused by their fathers. They are very similar type people: cold and violent. For Eveline, her...