Wednesday, March 14, 2012

The Sound and the Fury


Oxford, Mississippi, the home of Ole Miss and William Faulkner. Today the temps his 81, woo hoo. We started our day at Rowan Oak, Faulkner's 1844 antebellum home where he wrote the Pulitzer Prize winning A Fable's outlines on his study walls. Our research found out that James Lee Burke and Salman Rushdie have also visited there. It's a literary oddity to see those two listed together. It's also a serendipity that we were just in New Iberia seeking out James Lee Burke spots mentioned in his Robicheaux series. The grounds of Rowan Oak appear much as they did when Faulkner lived there with the out kitchen, barn, stable and servant's quarter still standing. Wayne has been reading Faulkner in preparation for this trip. After, we went to the town square to buy more Faulkner. The square's format is exactly like the Magnolia square. The courthouse in Magnolia is more charming. But the stores in Oxford are more upscale and the fronts preserved better. The stores are of 3 varieties: clothing, restaurants and book stores. Oh, and the occasional law firm. Ole Miss was disappointing to me. I expected the university to be quaint and situated walking distance from the town square. However, it is modern and spread out. We went to the museum, which had a paltry collection. Now we have discovered there is nothing else here to see except the Confederate Cemetery. We will dine on the square tonight and make haste for Chattanooga tomorrow. For more pictures visit my flicker