Reading Jason’s Section

While Jason’s section might seem to be much less complex than either Benjy’s or Quentin’s sections due to his more straightforward style of narration, readers should take care not to be lulled into complacency. He tends to avoid naming subjects with which he is uncomfortable; here, he is discussing his uncle Maury’s behavior at Mr. Comson’s funeral:

“After a while he kind of sneaked his hand to his mouth and dropped them out the window. Then I knew what I had been smelling. Clove stems. I reckon he thought that the least he could do at Father’s or maybe the sideboard thought it was still Father and tripped him up when he passed” (197).

In “I reckon he thought that the least he could do at Father’s or maybe . . .,” he is referring to his father’s funeral, but he does not put the word “funeral” after “Father’s,” perhaps because naming it as such would be too painful. Jason exhibits a similar tendency to avoid using terms with which he is uncomfortable in other parts of his section:

“. . . it was the same day one month that Father went up there and got it and brought it home and wouldn’t tell anything about where she was or anything . . .” (197-198).

The “it” he is talking about is the infant Quentin, who his father travelled to retrieve and bring home. It may be that he avoids saying “the baby” or “Quentin” in order to emotionally distance himself from her, but that is unclear.