Understanding William Faulkner’s, “Barn Burning”

William Faulkner’s short story, “Barn Burning”, seems to encapsulate the desires of any young boy who is looking for acceptance and approval from their father.  Faulkner helps us see what the boy perceives of his own father.  It could be easily said that the father was abusive and uncaring, but what his father was doing, on the order of sociopathic, was expressing his hatred for those that he didn’t bother to show any measure of respect.  The father not only scared his son, but begrudgingly, his wife and children.  They knew to stay well enough away from his sinister deeds, when he felt an injustice was done to him.  His callous nature and brooding, unsympathetic manners becomes evident when the father goes to see his new boss and pushes his way into the home all the while having fresh horse manure on his shoe.  He knowingly and spitefully walks on his boss’ rug.  After the wife rebukes him of his actions, he turns slowly and with a “heavy foot” smears the manure more, into the rug.  In the critical analysis of this story, it seems the father is so full of hate that he unapologetically burns down the barns of his accusers, knowing he was probably to blame for the actions that brought him to see the Justice of the peace in the first place.  When the son, realizes that his father is on another rampage and intends to burn down another barn, he tries to warn the victims of his deeds.  This seeming betrayal of the son to his father was in fact, retribution for all the years of neglect and abuse from an emotionally crippled coward.