What is the significance of fire in Faulkner's Barn Burning Essay

What is the significance of fire in Faulkner's Barn Burning - Essay Example sis, and such practice is still in continuance today where individuals and scholars are attempting to analyze a piece of literature to identify different symbols, themes, and moral lessons from it. This paper is attempting a similar attempt of analyzing one of the most popular works of William Faulkner: ‘Barn Burning’ (Faulkner, pp. 1-47), and will endeavor to identify the significance and representation of the ‘fire’ in this tale of acceptance and self-discovery. Brief review of this piece of literature has indicated that Sarty has played the leading role in this story while his father depicts an unconstructive role due to, and in protest of the upper classes of the Civil War. In specific, Abner Snopes is father in this story that cherishes the moment of destruction of others’ barns that he burns to protest against aristocrats (Faulkner, pp. 11-12). In this story, the author has attempted to portray different aspects of the relationship of father and son, as the leading character of the story confronts two sides: his father’s and truth’s. In such theme, the author has played a significant role by using the symbolized notion of ‘fire’ at various places of the story. Although fire is a factual object, however, the notion of fire symbolizes anger of the father, as well as his impudence and effrontery for property, and specifically, barns of other people. In this way, the author has attempted to use the symbol of fire to explain hidden messages in the story, as the approach is clear from the very start of the story that begins with fire of a barn and ends with the same. In personal opinion, brief review of the story indicated that leading character’s obsessive affection to his family (Millgate, pp. 271), especially to his father is also related to the notion of ‘fire’, as story shows that Sarty trusted his father in the beginning and continued to think that fires will end soon; however, the story ended with another fire from his father. In