Keywords
Color
Human nature
Dry September
Submitted : 2022-03-23
Accepted : 2022-04-07
Published : 2022-04-22
Abstract
Color metaphor plays a huge role in setting off the atmosphere, depicting the characters, and revealing the significance of the theme. In Dry September, Faulkner used different colors in a metaphorical and symbolic way. The metaphor of different colors implies the abstract human nature. The colors in Dry September are closely related to the thematic meanings of “madness, violence, and death.” By analyzing the metaphorical meanings of the colors, it is then possible to have a better understanding about the profound themes expressed in the short story. However, there are several studies on this short story concerning color metaphor. This paper attempts to analyze the metaphorical meanings represented by the colors in detail to better comprehend the evil side of human nature and the tragedy of life that the author wanted to convey in the short story.
References
Tao J, 2005, Review and Reflection on Faulkner Studies in China. Journal of Sichuan Foreign Studies University, 21(3): 1-3.
Kenney AF, 1996, Faulkner and Racial Mythology. Connotations, 3: 259-75.
Volpe EL, 1989, Dry September: Metaphor for Despair. College Literature, 16(1): 60-65.
Jin W, 2009, On Miss Minnie Cooper’s Madness in Faulkner’s Dry September. Journal of Tianjin Foreign Languages University, 16(06): 45-49.
Liang X, 2006, Madness, Violence, and Death: An Analysis of Metaphor in Faulkner’s Short Story “Dry September”. Foreign Literature Studies, 2006(01): 111-118.
Ray VF, 1953, Human Color Perception and Behavioral Response. Transactions of the New York Academy of Sciences, 16(2): 98.
Shu D, 2000, Metaphorical Research, Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, Shanghai.
Wikipedia, 2019, Pink. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pink (accessed on April 1, 2019).
Wu J, 2005, The Symbolic Meaning of English Color Words in English and American Literature. Journal of Huazhong Agricultural University (Social Science Edition), ZI: 239-242.
Faulkner W, 2010, Reading Short Stories of “Dry September” in English [Zhang L, Eds.], Fudan University Press, Shanghai, 236-248.
Xia W, 2009, Environmental Description in Faulkner’s Short Story Dry September. Time Literature, 02: 113-114.
Li X, 2004, A Comparative Study of English and Chinese Basic Color Terms, Hebei Normal University, Hebei.
Liu Y, 2016, An Analysis on Injustice of William Faulkner’s Dry September. Proceedings of Fifth Northeast Asia International Symposium on Language, Literature and Translation (NAISOLLT), 05: 404-408.
Pi A, 2009, Human Elegy in the Bloody Dusk – Interpretation of the Characters in Dry September. Journal of Central South University of Forestry and Technology (Social Science Edition), 3(05): 142-145.
Gu W, 2014, Analysis of Color Words in Chinese and Western Country. Overseas English, 05: 224-225.
Zhang Yu, 2015, Review of Study on Color Words in English and Chinese. Campus English, 18: 200-201.
Wang H, 2016, Color Symbolism in The Great Gatsby. Journal of Hubei Correspondence University, 29(17): 191-192.