William Faulkner's short fiction, "Dry September," takes place in a small, southern town during the reconstruction period. During reconstruction, blacks had very few rights. "Dry September" shows the reader just how hard it was for black people in a white community. In this story, the reader will see these aspects: racism, violence, and sin for passion. Faulkner uses these issues to show the reader how it affects individuals and society. Living in a small town is scary because rumors can spread like fire. One man's violent actions influence another man. Whoever they used their violent acts on affects and continues to affect the people in that society. Faulkner uses cruelty in addition to racism and women's position in society to show the reader what is truly happening behind all the problems that are seen. Faulkner's "Dry September" covers a very important subject during this period: black people's relationships within the white community. The first line of the story reads, "Through the bloody September, aftermath of sixty-two rainless days, it had gone like a fire in dry grass-the rumor, the story, whatever it was" (Bausch 527).w This line is one of the most important lines in the story. It says so much about what is going on in Jefferson, Mississippi. The town and dead, no excitement or any type of entertainment, but that suddenly changed with rumor that had started. Rumors in this small town spread like a fire in a dry field. The rumor about Will Mayes attacking Miss Minnie Cooper destroyed everything in its path and caused a lot of drama. When describing the scene, Faulkner says that it was a bloody September. The blood is a symbol of the bloodshed that Will Mayes is going to face. The blood could also represent the damage the rumor will have on the town. Faulkner uses this line to describe the town and the people in it. The reader can get a general idea of how this story is going to play out just from this one line. This story r