William Faulkner succeeded in achieving what no man before him and few men after him could do. He not only wrote some of the most important and influential American literature in history; he told stories that described to the world the inner workings of the Southern mentality. Faulkner pioneered many literary and psychological fronts in a way that is still unmatched today. William Faulkner received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1950 and the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction twice, once in 1955 and again in 1963 (Minter). Faulkner's works, although little read by young Americans, show not only the socio-economic aspects of rural life in the South, but also a way of life and a set of mentalities that still affect culture, opinions, the practices and even daily life of the South. Born September 25, 1897, to Murry Cuthbert Faulkner and Maud Butler Faulkner, in New Albany, near Oxford, Mississippi, where he spent most of his life, William Faulkner became one of literature's most influential authors. American (Minter). Faulkner spent his childhood listening to stories told by his family and neighbors. Most of these stories revolved around his prominent great-grandfather, “The Colonel,” who was a Civil War hero and plantation owner. In response to these stories, William Faulkner invented a fictional country that showed the world the effect the past had, and some would say still has, on the Deep South, its people and its social classes. Many residents of Oxford and surrounding towns have often stated that they remember hearing under different pretexts almost all the stories told in the bindings of Faulkner's novels. During Faulkner's schoolyard years, although athletic, he was often disturbed... middle of paper. ....iteration. He is also adept at giving the world a glimpse of the macabre and taboo that is often overlooked when taking an outsider's view of a person's life. Faulkner's many talents as an author won him numerous awards and solidified his place as one of the most influential and notable authors in American literary history. Works Cited “The novelist William Faulkner is born.” Novelist William Faulkner is born. Np, and Web. April 18, 2014. “William Faulkner – Biographical.” » William Faulkner – Biographical. Np, and Web. April 18, 2014 Minter, David. “William Faulkner.” American National Biography (from Oxford University Press): Research Starters. Internet. April 18, 2014 Faulkner, William. Absalom, Absalom! New York: Modern Library, 1951. Print. Faulkner, William. Light in August: the corrected text. New York: Vintage, 1990. Print.