Setting

Time setting

William Faulkner’s short story “Dry September” is set in the early 1900s. The time setting is suggested by the presence of a runabout car, “the first automobile in town” (l. 124). Runabout cars came into use at the end of the 19th century and remained widely popular until 1915.

The action of the story takes place in a single night, over the span of a few hours. The story begins at twilight on a Saturday evening of a particularly dry month of September (ll. 1-5). In ends at midnight, when McLendon returns home (l. 301).

Physical setting

The name of the town where the action takes place is indicated as Jefferson (l. 53). The story is set in a southern state of the United States. This can be deduced from the conversation between the customers at the barber shop: “ ‘You better go back North where you came from. The South don't want your kind here’ ” (l. 42). The animosity between North and South is the result of the American Civil War that took place approximately 50 years before the time of the story. The war was caused by growing tensions between southern and northern states over the institution of slavery, as the South was supporting the continuation of slavery while the North was opposing the practice.

The story begins in a barber shop, where “the ceiling fan stirred, without freshening it, the vitiated air” (ll. 5-6). The setting then moves onto the streets of Jefferson (l. 146), to the ice factory (l. 168), outside town (ll. 215-216), and lastly in McLendon’s house (l. 301). Other parts of Jefferson such as Minnie’s house, the square, and the movie theatre are also mentioned in the text.

Social setting

The social setting of the story revolves around the class differences, gender norms, and racial discrimination of the early 1900s. American society in the early 1900s was experiencing a rapid advancement in science and techn...

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