Abstract:Light in August was written by William Faulkner in 1932 and is his first novel based on issues of race. This novel has two main clues. One is about Joe Christmas who loses his racial identity and suffers all kinds of social persecution only because he is suspected to be a mulatto. Finally, Joe is executed by the white after he kills his white lover, Joanna Burden. The other is about Lena who walks to the town, Jefferson, on foot in order to look for her lover after she is pregnant and abandoned by her lover. This thesis attempts to find the inner and external causes of Joe Christmas’s tragic fate through such some aspects as the childhood obsession, racial discrimination in the southern society of America, religious discrimination and fanaticism and flawed character in Joe Christmas. Meanwhile, the writer also tries to reveal the destruction of human beings by various evils in the south of America.

Key words: Light in August; William Faulkner; Joe Christmas

CONTENTS

摘要

Abstract

1. Introduction1

1.1 A Brief Introduction to William Faulkner and His Works 

1.2 Literature Review

2. The External Causes of Joe Christmas’s Tragedy..3

2.1 The Childhood Obsession

2.2 Racial Discrimination

2.3 Religion

2.3.1 Religious Fanaticism

2.3.2 The Distortion of Christianity

2.4 The Influences of Women on Joe Christmas

3. The Internal Causes of Joe Christmas’s Tragedy...8

3.1 Joe Christmas’s Ambiguous Identity

3.2 Joe Christmas’s Flawed Character

4. Conclusion..11

Bibliography...12

Acknowledgements..13