The differences between the two novels Women of Brewsters place by Gloria Naylor and As I lay dying by William Faulkner

The differences between the two novels Women of Brewster's place by Gloria Naylor and As I lay dying by William Faulkner are many and varied. They differ in their tone, style, handling of characters and overall continuity. That, however, is not the topic of this essay. What I will be assessing is how these two authors handle the theme of family. Do they find that family is a support or a trap for the individuals in the story? Maybe both. Do they differ in their way of thinking or are they of one mind on the subject?

I will start by dissecting each story based on these ideas, then I will compare the two ways of thinking.

In Gloria Naylor's Women of Brewster's place, there are quite a few individuals, each with her own story and her own trials and tribulations. I will follow the flow of the story and talk about the characters in the same order as she has.

Mattie Michael has had a hard life. She persisted on loving her son, even though he brought her no end of grief. In that sense, she was trapped by her love for him, but that same love, when transferred onto Ettae Mae Johnson, did bring joy in the form of companionship in her later days. Also, she was the impromptu mother-figure for most of Brewster's plac

In Women of Brewster's place, we find many stories with entrapment in them, but ultimately the family, whether direct or indirect, comes through. Mattie is a surrogate mother, Etta Mae a loving sister, Kiswana a loving child, Ciel a needy daughter, Cora Lee a confused child and Theresa and Louise the odd couple.

In the case of Kiswana Browne, we find both support and entrapment. Although she was supported and loved by her family, Kiswana saw them as an impediment to her life as seen by her independent eyes. She could not deny her parents love for her, but at the same time could not abide by their passive role in the African-American community. Later, we see that the love of her parents was unconditional to the point of accepting her life in the shoddy apartment where she lived. Not only did they understand what she was going through, but they also were willing, albeit indirectly, to support her financially. That might be the only case in both stories where love of family outweighs the traps that come along with it.