“Barn Burning” by William Faulkner is a classic story of clan and family loyalty. In the short story, family patriarch Abner Snopes leads his family through a grueling life of frequent travel. Family loyalty is tested and Abner is ultimately brought to justice at the end of the story. Although his son Sarty Snopes is a rounded and dynamic character, Abner on the other hand is a relatively flat and static character, as he only portrays a few character traits, while resisting any notable personal change throughout the story. One way to view the character of Abner Snopes is as a man who simply represents anger and destruction. Presumably Abner's anger stems from the Civil War era, when he did not fight for the Union or Confederate forces, but stole horses from both sides to sell for money . When he is shot by a Confederate officer, he is left with a crippled leg, foreshadowing his grudge against society throughout the short story: "The Confederate provost's musket ball had caught him in the heel on a stolen horse he thirty years ago. » (Faulkner). Although Abner's anger ignites early in his life, his method of vengeance through destruction is likely not acquired until his first barn fire. When he burns down Mr. Harris's barn, Abner does so not only because of his anger, but also because he sincerely believes he is imposing some kind of inevitable justice. From this point in the story, Abner believes that destruction in the form of barn burning is justified in his mission of revenge against the society that so violently despised him. Abner becomes a dangerous dog without a leash. He actually seems willing to seek out confrontations, fueling the fire in his... middle of paper...... initiating men he himself despises. The way he treats his family does not necessarily reflect positively on his moral values. Although Abner is seen as a flat and static character, his character has more to say than you can imagine. There's a certain relative unknown about him that helps spark interest in his character. Abner's anger and path of destruction are evident in a deeply disturbed man, but the reader is still left wondering about the morality of this man's situation. Although his family life is not admirable, Abner can be seen as a supreme villain or victim in the context of the story. However, Abner's personality itself proves to be his ultimate tragic flaw and when Abner fails to change over the course of the story, his stubborn anger leads to his ultimate demise as he attempts revenge...