Ch. 5 ; How does Rosa end her narrative? What is Quentin’s reaction to the ending, and what are some of the differences in orientation that emerge through this reaction?

Rosa ends her narrative telling Quentin about the murder of Charles Bon by Henry. Rosa is the only narrator who has lived during the events of the story, yet her recollection of these events is greatly colored by forty years of hatred towards Sutpen. She refers to Sutpen as a demon, her version of the story has an accusatory tone, and she blames Sutpen for all the problems and difficulties the Coldfield’s have endured. Rosa takes her resentment further, and blames the the fall of the South on men like Sutpen and their malicious influence on Southern society. At the end of her narration, it also clear why Rosa accepted Sutpen’s proposal initially, and then soon after declined his proposal. As a young woman, she was optimistic and romantic. However, when Sutpen demanded a son before the engagement, this frank, vulgar, and bold request, offends Rosa’s sense of decorum and romance. Miss Rosa believes that Sutpen is really evil because he has failed to become the romantic chevalier she was searching for. And when she contemplated the complete downfall of the Coldfield family, she felt compelled to blame their destruction on someone. Since no one had disappointed her as much as Sutpen did, it was easy to blame him. Rosa’s hatred and outrage results from her feeling violated by Sutpen’s proposal, and her romantic dreams of marriage being shattered, and this is how she ends her narration. Quentin begins to takeover as the main narrator, and his desire is to organize all versions of the story into one complete story. So it may have seemed that Quentin was just a passive listener, but in reality Quentin was listening all along in order to put the story together cohesively. It will be Quentin’s narration that will give us a broader, and subjective perspective on the account. Quentin has heard of this story not just from Rosa, but from his grandfather, and so with the facts he has received from his grandfather, Quentin can now see things with a degree of objectivity. The shifts in perspective, and in narrators allow us to add meaning to the story, and at the center of Quentin’s narrations is man’s relationship to the past. Quentin’s narration seems more concerned with how much of an individuals past and customs influence their future. What really determines a person’s future? Their adherence to their values, in this case southern values? Quentin seems to believe so. So Quentin is more than just another narrator in this novel, in some ways, he is as involved as Miss Rosa Coldfield in this myth. Quentin realizes that his environment and world are the same in which Sutpen lived and operated in, and that this myth and its implications are part of his culture and history as well, one that cannot be simply ignored. The Sutpen story is a part of Quentin’s life, a story that becomes his as well through his grandfather’s association with Sutpen. This story has now become an integral part of his heritage as well, and Quentin receives his basic impressions of the myth through his father’s and grandfather’s retelling of the Sutpen story. He becomes so involved in the story, that after hearing Rosa’s version and his grandfather’s version, he interprets the story in his own way. So while Rosa’s narration is greatly tainted and influenced by her hatred, Quentin’s interpretation, and retelling of the story is different. Quentins interpretation and narration allow him the much needed space to reflect and meditate on how this story has any bearing on him, and his future.