Absolom is the story of the downfall of the South. In the novel, Faulkner, despite the fact that he is a southern writer, portrays the south as the cause of its own downfall. He condemns the morals and ethics of the South. However, Faulkner also attempts to make a connection between man and time. Time is very important for him and we can see it in his writing style as well as in the characters stories. The principal theme of the story is the destruction of the South as the result of corrupt morals and unethical decisions that are made. This is a recurring theme in many of Faulkners works. The downfall of the South ties in with the Civil War. The fall of the Coldfield family, one of the most respectable families in town, brought by Thomas Sutpen, a man of mystery who appeared out of nowhere marked by his lack of morals, symbolizes the destruction of the South. The whole foundation of the South is a family. The South was constructed as a family in order to create the blue-blood line that the north had, so it is understandable why Faulkner chose that metaphor. Faulkner leads us to believe that South was doomed to failure despite its attempts to recreate the sense of civility and holiness. Behind the illusory mask of religion, matrimony, and family life in general lies lust, incest, fratricide, and slavery. Incest seems to appear more frequently than others. Charles Bon, son of Thomas Sutpen and Eulalia Bon, becomes engaged to his own sister, Judith, only to become a victim of fratricide. Lust and adultery play an important role in adding to the sin list. Sutpens first wife is Eulalia Bon. When Sutpen finds out that she was not of Spanish decent as he originally thought, but of African decent he leaves her and his son. His marriage to Ellen Coldfield is based on sexual desire, a desire to have a heir, and familys respectability. All of those things are present but there is no actual love involved, only selfish desire. Charles Bon, alth...
