Mosquitoes

Mosquitoes is a satirical novel by William Faulkner, first published in 1927. It is one of Faulkner’s earliest novels and is quite different in tone from his later, more famous Southern Gothic works. The story is set mostly on a yacht cruising around Lake Pontchartrain near New Orleans. It follows a loosely connected group of artists, writers, socialites, and intellectuals who spend their time arguing, flirting, and philosophizing while drifting in isolation from ordinary society. Among the central characters are the wealthy patron Mrs. Maurier, the sculptor Gordon, the writer Dawson Fairchild (a satirical stand-in for literary types Faulkner observed), and several others who represent different artistic attitudes and personal frustrations. A young woman named Jenny Steinbauer and her brother figure also play important roles in the group’s emotional tensions. Rather than having a tight plot, the novel is structured around conversations, philosophical debates, and character studies. The “mosquitoes” of the title are often interpreted both literally and symbolically—representing irritation, aimless intellectual buzzing, and the petty annoyances that plague the characters’ self-absorbed lives.