Point of View

Sanctuary by William Faulkner is written in the third person omniscient point of view. This point of view is crucial to the novel because it offers an overall look at the people and places, of which there are many. Faulkner is a master at using this point of view to give glimpses into the lives of the characters without ever revealing their thoughts and motives. The characters in Faulkner's works tend to be irrational, short tempered, and often quite peculiar. Allowing the reader to see these behaviors from an objective point of view adds some mystery while allowing the reader to draw one's own conclusions about each person and situation. Also, writing from another point of view would take away from the character study as a whole.

For example, Ruby sees things much differently than Goodwin, Tommy, or even Temple. To use Ruby's point of view...