April Eighth, 1928
We have reached the end! While reading The Sound and the Fury, we are introduced to four different perspectives: Benjy's, Quentin's, Jason's, and Dilsey's. In Benjy's perspective we learn of his mental illness and his love and affection for his sister Caddy. In his point of view, he is centered in the time he lives in. His section constantly goes from past and present because of something he sees that may trigger a memory to make him believe that he is living in the present of the memory he recalls. Then we reach Quentin's section. In this we learn of the close brother and sister relationship he and Caddy have and his obsession of trying to protect her. Quentin also reflects from past to present but not in the way Benjy does, he is stuck believing in old traditional views and his life takes a turn when feelings are brought up within him when Caddy has an unexpected pregnancy. Then the third section revolves around Jason. Unlike his brothers, Jason does not reflect on the past at all, his main focus solely revolves around the present. Another difference we see in him is he despises Caddy, he doesn't care for her like his other two brothers, he blames her for everything that goes wrong in his life. Then we finally meet Dilsey's point of  view. Dilsey was the second mother to all the Compson children. In her section she teaches a sudden epiphany about the doom of the Compson family, "I've seed de first en de last... I seed de beginnin, and now I sees de endin." Then towards the very end, there are two narrative lines of Benjy and Jason that produce an ending.
I think Faulkner wrote in this order because he wanted to draw the reader in (which he did), and to show the reader how much the book  revolves around Caddy and how the traditional old southern views take place in this novel. Benjy loves his sister because she is the only person that cares for him, but his view is old south. Because of his mental illness he is stuck in the past. Quentin loves his sister as well and all he wants to do is protect her but his view is also old south! I think even more old south than Benjy's view because he is stuck on traditional values for women. When he learns of her unexpected pregnancy he knew the family would shut her out and disown her and that's why he tried to take the blame and said he committed incest with her because in his mind women don't want sex. Next there's Jason who is also old south. With these three brothers believing in the traditonal views of the old south Faulker inserts through Dilsey's section that Caddy is the representation of the new south. She hates the traditional views of the old south even when she was younger, thus expains her rebelliousness.
Overall this novel is centered around Caddy and her representation in the book. She's the new south, while her family is stuck in the past and still believing in the old south views. I think the Compson's view of the old south is their downfall because they are so stuck on tradition and old southern views, while Caddy is surviving the downfall because she never believed in those traditonal views anyways. That being said, this novel is about the Compsons family downfall and how it affected each character in different ways. The telling of the story four times signifies this and how the old southern views affected each character in a different way and tore the family apart. Their lives went downhill.