by William Faulkner

William Faulkner grew up in Oxford, Mississippi, around the turn of the century. In 1929 he began his famous series of novels and short stories about the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, creating a complex set of characters who together formed a microcosm of the Deep South in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. "The Bear" centers on Isaac "Ike" McCaslin, grandson of a Southern planter who ravaged his human relations as well as his wilderness property.

Events in History at the Time the Short Story Takes Place

Hunting in the South. Prior to and after the Civil War, hunting was a popular activity throughout the South, whether enjoyed as a pastime or employed for survival. Many Southern hunters used dogs to aid them in their search for prey and rode through the woods on horseback. They hunted to both obtain food and enjoy strictly masculine...