Benjy Chapter

What role does Benjy play in the Compson family? What does his unique perspective show us about the Compsons?

Benjy is the thirty-three-year-old, mentally handicapped Compson son. Benjy is similar to a baby. He can’t talk; instead, he communicates his unhappiness through moaning and crying. He doesn’t understand and can't comprehend a lot of things that happen, but he does recognize when things change. For most people in the Compson family, Benjy is nothing more than a burden or annoyance that they have to deal with. The only person who shows true love and compassion towards him is his sister, Caddy. Caddy really tries to help Benjy understand what’s happening and tries to understand Benjy, too. Although Benjy is mentally handicapped, he still has thoughts and emotions, which we see in his chapter. Because of this, we gain a perspective about the Compsons that others do not experience. The Compsons are not morally perfect; they are not very compassionate and kind towards people unlike them. They are very concerned with their image and what others think about them. It seems like they would rather not even have Benjy around because he requires so much time and attention and because he destroys the perfect image the Compsons desire.

What might Benjy's need for consistency, and his extremely strong nostalgia for the past say about the concept of family? About the South as a place?

Benjy has a strong need for consistency. He wants things to remain stable because he is unable to make sense of new things and draw conclusions or communicate how he feels when things do change. Benjy also thinks about the past constantly. Even though he has a rough life, it was less rough in the past when Caddy was there, so he thinks about times when Caddy was around. Also, everyone was more compassionate when he was young because the other children were little too. He was less of a burden since he was still a child and some of his childlike actions could be justified by his age. As special needs children grow older, some view them as more of a burden because they are still extremely dependent on their parents when their siblings have left the house, like what is seen the Compson family. Benjy’s need for consistency and strong nostalgia for the past could be saying what an important role memories play in a family even as they drift apart. It can also be showing how important image is in the South and how the hierarchy works in the South at the time within the Compson family in the way they treat Benjy even though he is from a white family of status. 

Does Benjy fulfill a symbolic role in the novel?

In the novel, Benjy fulfills a symbolic role of the innocent one. Although innocent characters can be flawed in their naiveté, they are usually trustworthy because they see the world without the others' biases. They are pure and honest and have not been corrupted by the evil of others. Although Benjy’s thoughts can be jumbled and he cannot talk, he is morally good at heart and represents the innocent archetype.