William Faulkner was a prolific writer who became very famous during his lifetime, but shied away from the spotlight as much as possible. He is remembered as both a gentlemanly Southern eccentric and an arrogant, snobbish alcoholic.
Like so many of his literary characters, Faulkner was profoundly affected by his family. Faulkner's great-grandfather, Colonel William Falkner (Faulkner, the author, added the "u" to his name), was born in 1825, and moved to Mississippi at the age of fourteen. He was a lawyer, writer, politician, soldier, and pioneer who was involved in several murder trials—including two in which he was accused—and was a best-selling novelist. During the Civil War he...
