Failure Quote by William Faulkner
““…and the mousesized mousecolored spinster trembling and aghast at her own temerity, staring across it at the childless bachelor in whom ended that long line of men who had had something in them of decency and pride even after they had begun to fail at the integrity and the pride had become mostly vanity and selfpity: from the expatriate who had to flee his native land with little else except his life yet who still refused to accept defeat, through the man who gambled his life and his good name twice and lost twice and declined to accept that either, and the one who with only a clever small quarterhorse for tool avenged his dispossessed father and grandfather and gained a principality, and the brilliant and gallant governor and the general who though he failed at leading in battle brave and gallant men at least risked his own life too in the failing, to the cultured dipsomaniac who sold the last of his patrimony not to buy drink but to give one of his descendants at least the best chance in life he could think of.””
About This Quote
Source Novel: The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner, 1929
A complex tapestry of characters, each confronting personal failure, exile, and the struggle for dignity amid societal decay.
In simple terms: People face exile, failure, and dignity.
Recognize resilience in adversity.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- family conflict
- political turmoil
- personal ambition
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- What drives each character’s sense of honor?
- How does exile shape identity?
Narrative is dense and may obscure clear moral lessons.