Mosquitoes - William Faulkner
Summary Mosquitoes by William Faulkner is a satirical novel chronicling a yachting trip on Lake Pontchartrain, near New Orleans. The voyage...
Summary
Mosquitoes by William Faulkner is a satirical novel chronicling a yachting trip on Lake Pontchartrain, near New Orleans. The voyage is organized by Mr. Ernest Talliaferro, a wealthy but somewhat bumbling dilettante, and populated by a group of artists, writers, and intellectuals, including the sculptor Mrs. Eva Wiseman, the writer Dawson Fairchild, and the painter Mark Frost. Amidst the confined space of the yacht Nausikaa, the characters engage in endless, often pretentious, discussions about art, life, and love, revealing their vanity, insecurities, and the gap between their artistic ideals and mundane realities. Intertwined with these intellectual debates are the more direct, if awkward, romantic entanglements of the younger characters, particularly Patricia Robyn and David West, and the general ennui and irritation that builds among the passengers, mirroring the relentless drone of the titular mosquitoes. The journey is largely uneventful in terms of external action but delves deeply into the internal landscapes and social dynamics of its characters, satirizing the self-importance of the artistic community.
Book Sections
Section 1: The Gathering and Departure
The story opens in New Orleans, introducing a disparate group of artists and intellectuals preparing for a yacht trip. Mr. Ernest Talliaferro, a wealthy but rather clueless patron of the arts, has invited them aboard his yacht, the Nausikaa, for a two-week cruise on Lake Pontchartrain. Among the first to arrive are Mrs. Eva Wiseman, a renowned sculptor, and her young, ambitious protégé, Julius Higgins. Dawson Fairchild, a cynical writer, and Mark Frost, an intense painter, also join the group, along with Patricia Robyn, Talliaferro's young, tomboyish niece, and David West, a young man smitten with Pat. The initial conversations are a mix of intellectual posturing, artistic discussions, and the awkward social dynamics typical of such a gathering. The yacht eventually sets sail, symbolizing a departure from mundane life, though the characters bring all their earthly concerns with them.
| Character | Characteristics | Motivations |
|---|---|---|
| Mr. Ernest Talliaferro | Wealthy, host, somewhat foolish, pretentious | To be seen as a patron of the arts, to escape his wife, to impress. |
| Mrs. Eva Wiseman | Prominent sculptor, confident, opinionated | To observe, to engage in intellectual debate, to assert her artistic vision. |
| Dawson Fairchild | Writer, cynical, observant, witty | To analyze human nature, to escape the mundanity of his life, to find material. |
| Mark Frost | Painter, serious, intense, brooding | To understand art, to find inspiration, to engage with fellow artists. |
| Julius Higgins | Young sculptor, protégé of Mrs. Wiseman | To learn from Mrs. Wiseman, to develop his own art, to gain recognition. |
| Patricia Robyn (Pat) | Young, rebellious, tomboyish, impulsive | To escape boredom, to assert independence, to explore her desires. |
| David West | Young, earnest, infatuated with Pat | To be close to Pat, to experience love, to overcome his shyness. |
| Theodore Robyn | Pat's brother, artistic, detached, quiet | To observe, to pursue his own artistic thoughts, to avoid direct engagement. |
| Miss Myrtle | Unmarried woman, a "secretary" or companion | To find a husband, to fit in, to escape her ordinary life. |
Section 2: Intellectual Debates and Discomfort
As the Nausikaa glides across the lake, the passengers settle into a routine of eating, drinking, and endless conversation. The discussions frequently revolve around art, love, and the nature of existence, often devolving into pretentious monologues or witty, albeit superficial, exchanges. Fairchild, the writer, serves as a central figure in these debates, often offering cynical observations. Major Ayers, an old acquaintance of Talliaferro, joins the company, adding another layer of tedium with his tiresome anecdotes. The confines of the yacht begin to wear on the passengers, and the idyllic setting is increasingly marred by personal irritations and the incessant hum of mosquitoes, paralleling the irritating presence of certain individuals and their ideas.
| Character | Characteristics | Motivations |
|---|---|---|
| Major Ayers | Elderly, boorish, tells rambling stories | To be heard, to relive past glories (often imagined), to feel important. |
| Dr. Howard | Physician, cynical, quiet observer at times | To observe human nature with a medical detachment, to occasionally offer dry commentary. |
Section 3: Romantic Entanglements and Disillusionment
Amidst the intellectual sparring, the younger characters navigate their own romantic predicaments. David West continues to pursue Pat, who, in her tomboyish way, both encourages and frustrates him. She frequently disappears with her brother, Theodore, or simply evades David's direct advances. Their interactions highlight the awkwardness and uncertainty of young love, contrasting sharply with the more detached and abstract discussions of the older artists. The "Young Woman with the Tired Eyes," a minor character, appears, embodying a quiet resignation to life's disappointments, a stark contrast to the vibrant, if confused, youthful energy of Pat and David. The voyage continues, but the initial novelty wanes, giving way to a sense of aimlessness and growing dissatisfaction among the passengers.
| Character | Characteristics | Motivations |
|---|---|---|
| Young Woman with the Tired Eyes | Quiet, weary, somewhat anonymous | To escape briefly, to find a moment of peace, to observe passively. |
Section 4: The Island and Failed Escapades
The yacht eventually docks at a small, uninhabited island, which some characters refer to as the "Isle of the Nausikaa." This provides a brief respite from the close quarters of the boat and an opportunity for different interactions. Pat, ever impulsive, runs off with David, seeking an escape from the yacht and its occupants. Their escapade leads to a moment of near intimacy but ultimately ends in frustration and confusion, with Pat retaining her elusive quality. Other characters, like Fairchild and Frost, explore the island, reflecting on art and nature, while Mrs. Wiseman continues to hold court with her pronouncements. The brief freedom of the island ultimately reinforces the characters' individual solitudes and the impossibility of true escape from their own natures.
Section 5: The Return and Lingering Questions
As the two-week voyage draws to a close, the Nausikaa begins its journey back to New Orleans. The atmosphere on board is marked by a mixture of relief and lingering disappointment. The conversations become more reflective, and some characters face the imminent return to their 'real' lives with a sense of anti-climax. Pat and David's relationship remains unresolved, characteristic of the novel's general lack of definitive conclusions. The group disembarks, seemingly unchanged by their journey, their artistic pretensions intact, and their personal dilemmas unresolved. The novel concludes as it began, with the characters returning to their urban lives, leaving behind the Nausikaa and the brief, mosquito-ridden interlude, having gained little in the way of resolution or enlightenment, but perhaps a clearer, if cynical, view of themselves and each other.
Literary Genre: Modernist Novel, Satire, Comedy of Manners. It critiques the intellectual and artistic pretensions of its time.
Author Information:
William Faulkner (1897-1962) was an American writer, primarily known for his novels and short stories set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi. A Nobel Prize laureate (1949), he is considered one of the most important writers of Southern literature and modernism. His works often employ stream of consciousness, multiple narrators, and a complex, layered narrative structure. 'Mosquitoes' is an early work, preceding his major Yoknapatawpha novels like 'The Sound and the Fury' and 'Absalom, Absalom!', and showcases a different, more satirical side of his literary range.
Morale:
The novel suggests that intellectual and artistic posturing often serves as a façade for personal insecurities, vanity, and a lack of genuine connection. It critiques the detachment of artists from real life, implying that true experience and emotion are often missed in the pursuit of abstract ideals. The constant, irritating presence of mosquitoes symbolizes the inescapable irritations and trivialities of human interaction, especially when confined and forced to confront one another's foibles. Ultimately, the book implies that grand intellectual discussions rarely lead to profound understanding or personal growth, and that the search for meaning can often be a self-serving and ultimately futile exercise.
Curiosities:
- Semi-Autobiographical: 'Mosquitoes' is one of Faulkner's more directly autobiographical novels. It draws heavily on his own experiences living in New Orleans's French Quarter in the mid-1920s and a two-week yachting trip he took on Lake Pontchartrain with a group of local bohemians and artists.
- Faulkner's Early Work: Published in 1927, it is one of Faulkner's earliest novels, written before he fully developed the complex narrative styles and themes that would characterize his later, more famous works set in Yoknapatawpha County.
- Satirical Tone: Unlike the darker, tragic tone of much of his later work, 'Mosquitoes' is primarily a social satire, poking fun at the artistic and intellectual pretension of the New Orleans bohemian scene.
- Characters as Caricatures: Many of the characters are believed to be thinly veiled caricatures of real people Faulkner knew in New Orleans, including Sherwood Anderson (often seen in Dawson Fairchild) and other artists from the city's literary circle.
- A "Minor" Work: While not as critically acclaimed as his later masterpieces, 'Mosquitoes' offers an interesting glimpse into Faulkner's early development as a writer and his engagement with different literary styles and subjects before he found his distinctive voice and themes.
