Unnamed Mother of Sutpen's First Wife
Text:
Character Key:
Display Name:
Unnamed Mother of Sutpen's First Wife
Sort Name:
Unnamed Mother of Sutpen's First Wife
Race:
MixedBlackWhite
Gender:
Female
Class:
Upper Class
Rank:
Peripheral
Vitality:
Dead
First Mentioned:
Origin:
Spain
Biography:
Sutpen tells General Compson that his first father-in-law's wife "had been a Spaniard" (203); much later in the novel he tells his son Henry that in fact, as he discovered after marrying, she "was part negro" (283). This woman never appears in the novel, apparently having died before Sutpen gets involved with her husband and daughter. The Chronology at the end of the novel treats her mixed racial identity as a fact - "Sutpen learns his wife has negro blood" (305) - but the actual novel does not independently confirm it.
Ethnicity:
Creole
Individual or Group:
Individual
Character changes class in this text:
digyok:node/character/15430