Red Leaves (Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: William Faulkner
- First Published: 1930
- Type of Plot: Satire
- Time of Work: The nineteenth century, before the American Civil War
- Setting: Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi
- Principal Characters: Herman Basket, Louis Berry, The black man, Moketubbe, Issetibbeha, Doom, Ole Grandfather
- Genres: Realism, Short fiction, Satire
- Subjects: Tradition, Slavery or slaves, Native Americans or American Indians, Rites or ceremonies, Hunting or hunters, Life and death, Sacrifice, Cannibalism
- Locales: Yoknapatawpha County (fictive)
The Story
The situation at the beginning of “Red Leaves” is presented in a dialogue between sixty-year-old Herman Basket and his companion Louis Berry. The two are carrying out an assignment demanded by the age-old custom of some Mississippi Indians of burying slaves with the body of a chief. The two Indians are looking for the body servant of Chief Issetibbeha, who has just died under questionable circumstances. The servant is a black slave from Guinea. In mock-heroic tone and diction, the seekers discuss the fact that the man does not want to die. Bits of information...
[The entire page is 1537 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
See Also
