Summary:
Explores William Faulkner's Nobel Prize speech and details its effect on the books An American Childhood, by Annie Dillard, The Road to the Coorain, by Jill Ker Conway, and Growing Up, by Russell Baker.
With young wealthy eyes upon him, William Faulkner delivered his Nobel Prize speech. He made a single demand. Faulkner believed that a writer had a duty, a duty to write from the heart. He explained that writers need to write their emotions and experiences or they could never achieve a good piece of writing. The reasons why, we as humans, write is because we have "a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance" (Faulkner). Without these emotions from the heart a reader can't connect to the writing and therefore can't truly enjoy a valuable book. Faulkner alleged that writers "write not of the heart but of the glands" and I believe he was right (Faulkner). Distinct emotions such as "lust" and "fear" can't "prevail" over stronger, deeper emotions such as "love" and "compassion".....
This is a free excerpt of 135 words. There are 1,350 words (approx.
5 pages at 300 words per page) in the full essay.
Read the rest of this Essay with our William Faulkner, Annie Dillard, Russell Baker and Jill Ker Conway Access Pass.
