What is the meaning of the title of the sound and the fury?

Answer 1

"Sound and Fury" is an allusion referring to a great uproar and passionate exclaim that ultimately means nothing. It comes from a line in Shakespeare's play Macbeth (Act 5, Scene 5) when the character of Macbeth is informed of the death of his wife and he exclaims:

"She should have died hereafter;

There would have been a time for such a word,

To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,

To the last syllable of recorded time;

And all our yesterdays have lighted fools

The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!

Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,

And then is heard no more; it is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing."

Answer 2

The title for Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury comes from Macbeth's soliloquy, where he laments life and calls it "full of sound and fury". The meaning of this title can be taken to represent the disjointed stream of consciousness style in which it was written. In addition, it can also be taken to mirror the tragic events that led to the disintegration of this great Southern family.