...There are many recurring themes from the novel “As I Lay Dying” by William Faulkner, most of which that have to deal with family, loyalty, and love. The author helps brings together this large cast of fifteen different narrative characters by having each character's different ideas and passions within their lives to teach the audience that despite the disagreements and misunderstandings, the idea that the sense of family should stimulate a sense of loyalty and compassion in us all. Through the narration of Addie Bundren, who is by all means one of the most important characters since the entire story revolves around her death, we are able to see how her attitude towards her family and how it doesn’t bring out any good memories. When Addie...
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...William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying breaks the facticity of literary convention by constructing a storyline that asserts a conflict in the reader rather than predominately within the characters. The basic conflict that sets forth thematic conflict of the distinction of facts and truth within the nature of the mind is of a Southern decaying family’s attempt to bring their mother home for burial. Faulkner narrates each character’s singular point of view to show the result of the multitude of subjective interpretations as each character deals with their emotions engendered by the events. The reader is unsure as to which imitated perspective is objective towards the truth. Faulkner’s narration of imitating events from a different stand point develops an arguing conflict of what is thought to be an established nature of mind. As I Lay Dying is a conflict of the conceptual idea of truth. It can be interpreted that the conflict of the narrative is a conflict of our beings – whether or not there is such a thing as unprejudiced truth. Within the beginning narratives, the characters reveal their corruptions that will obscure their interpretations: including adultery, pregnancy, abortion, hatred, and insanity. Using multiple views promotes the isolation each family member’s internal conflicts in relation to their response to their mother’s death, relationships, and own seemingly selfish concerns. The reader begins to see the instability of their isolation when the Faulkner establishes...
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...As I Lay Dying Addie Bundren The mother whose dying wish is to be buried in her family plot in Jefferson. Her death instigates the primary movement of the novel, that of transporting the body to Jefferson. Anse Bundren The father who uses the trip to Jefferson to get new teeth and a new wife. Cash Bundren The oldest of the Bundren children who makes the coffin outside of Addie’s window. Darl Bundren The most philosophical of the Bundren children and also the most conscious of the futility of the situation. Jewel Bundren The love child of Addie and Reverend Whitfield and the one who repeatedly saves his mother’s corpse. Dewey Dell Bundren She is the daughter of the Bundren's and is pregnant with Lafe’s child. The trip to Jefferson represents her chance to get an abortion. Vardaman Bundren The youngest of the Bundren children who has not yet progressed to the point where he can separate reality from metaphor. Cora Tull A neighbor whose narrative provides a religious commentary on the Bundren's. Vernon Tull Cora’s husband and friend of Anse. Peabody The local doctor. Samson Another neighbor who lives near a bridge that the Bundren's intend to cross. Whitfield The minister and father of Jewel. Armstid A farmer the Bundren's meet on their trip. Moseley A pharmacist who will not help Dewey Dell. MacGowan A drugstore assistant who tricks Dewey Dell. Darl: Cora: Darl: Jewel: Darl: Cora: Dewey Dell: Tull: Anse: Darl: Peabody: Darl: Vardaman: ...
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...Addie Bundren’s love holds great power in William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, as it is essential to her sons’ sense of self. Withholding affection from Darl, her second oldest son, negatively impacts his self-worth to the point of existential crisis. Conversely, Addie loves Jewel, her middle son, which leaves him a man of action, certain in his state of being. Jewel receives love from his mother, resulting in his self-assurance. The product of Addie’s affair with the local minister, Jewel is the apple of her eye. Cora Tull, the Bundren’s moralizing neighbor, recognizes Addie’s favoritism towards her illegitimate son— “Jewel, the one she labored so to bear and coddled and petted so” (21). Moreover, from Addie’s posthumous monologue, she reveals...
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...As I Lay Dying “As I Lay Dying” is a novel written by an author with an American origin William Faulkner. The author explained that he wrote the novel from midnight up to 4.00 AM, in a span of six weeks without changing a word. Faulkner wrote the novel while working at a power plant in 1930. It is ranked among the top best novels in literature in the 20th century. The author is uses various writing techniques, varying lengthy chapters, as well as multiple narrators (Faulkner, 1). The book is narrated by fifteen different actors in all the fifty nine chapters. The story explains the life experience of death of their mother, as the family tries to ensure they fulfil the wishes of their mother. Faulkner in his novel discusses the life of Addie Bundren and her poor family’s pursuit and inspirations. The character is viewed as selfish and noble who is seriously ill, and is expected to die soon. Addie wants the whole family to honour her dying wish, of being buried in the middle of the town of Jefferson. Anse who is Addie’s husband, is obliged to...
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...Analyzing Characterization In As I Lay Dying In William Faulkner’s, As I Lay Dying, characters create themselves through their narrations of the event of their Addie’s death. The novel relies on characters for narration and own character development. In a way, the characters expose themselves in the novels and the novel becomes a form of “reflective characterization.” The narrations give insight to the characters personality by the syntax, imagery, stream of consciousness they employ. Often each narrative also offers a different perspective of another character or affirms the self-characterization of another character. Darl, who narrates most of the story, seems to be the most cerebral character. Darl’s character is particularly interesting because he is indeed mad in some ways but yet he is also the healthiest and most realistic of all Bundrens. He has a strange sense of what’s going on like that of Benjamin Compsons in The Sound and the Fury. He senses Addie’s death even though he and Jewel were getting lumber at the time of her death. He also knew that Dewey Dell was pregnant and that Jewel was an illegitimate son. Dewey Dells narration also supports Darl’s psychic abilities. Like Benjamin, he has the ability to communicate without words. After going into the secret shade with Lafe, Dell realizes that Darl knows what she has done. “I saw Darl and he knew. He said he knew without the worlds like he told me that ma was going to die without words,” (page 26). In a moving scene...
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...As I lay dying was a very twisted book. In as I lay dying Addie is dying or at some points in the book she is dead . Would you want your family to grant your wishes and take you to where you'd like to be buried ? Or want your secrets from life kept with you in your grave or let out ? Dying is an escape from the suffering of life . As I lay dying is told by individual sections from each family member telling their story of what is happening. While most chapters are told by members of the Bundren family, the few that are told by neighbors and other people who knew the family give a perspective of the family from an outsiders point of view . Each chapter is filled with detail and their own story. This makes me think of reality and what or who...
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...Topic n.1 As I lay dying… is a really eccentric novel written by William Faulkner. Faulkner likes to play in his work with human stupidity and haughty. Faulkner’s ability to reveal the difficulty of the human psyche. This novel is written in 59 sections in stream of consciousness form of literary style. This unique writting style shows us the unstoppable flow of thoughts from many different narrators, in this case from Bundren’s familly members. This novel is actually all about - Bundren‘s family which is very poor and -their journey to the Jefferson, because of Addie wanted to be buried there. During the long journey happens a lot of things. Natural elements are fighting them and slowing them down, meanwhile Addie is dacaying in the coffin...
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...In William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, Cash claims that “it aint so much what a fellow does, but it's the way the majority of folks is looking at him when he does it”(Faulkner 233). Through his character, Faulkner argues that whether or not one man’s actions are abnormal, it is society that has the power to deem them as rational or insane. For example, Martin Luther King was regarded as simply another advocate for black rights during his time as a young leader because he lacked the power to actually create significant change in communities. However, when he gained enough of a following, he had the power to negatively impact the hold whites had on restricting blacks’ rights. This led radical whites to attempt to shut him down, many calling him...
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...Throughout the novel, As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner, Faulkner uses interior monologue. Faulkner uses this style of writing to get the reader to think more. By using interior monologue, the reader is forced to think about what the characters’ thoughts mean about them and about other people. After Darl and Jewel get home, Darl stays on the porch while Jewel goes to the barn. Through Darl’s thought, we know that “Jewel kicks [the horse] in the stomach; the horse arches his neck back, crop-toothed; Jewel strikes him across the face with his fist and slides on the trough and mounts upon it” (13). Even though Darl is not in the barn, Darl somehow knows what Jewel is doing. Because of interior monologue, the reader is able to acknowledge that...
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...William Faulkner published As I Lay Dying in 1930, highlighting the issues of women oppression during this time. Women were not seen as equals to men, but rather a commodity for men to use and capitalize for their own advantage. Specifically, female sexuality was used as a benefit for men which resulted in a sense obligation and even regret for women. The two female characters, Addie Bundren and her daughter Dewey Dell, represent the oppressed women and pressures that come along with female sexuality. Faulkner presents female sexuality as an obligation for women in order to critique how men exploit women. Faulkner criticizes the way advantageously men use their sexuality in order to exploit female sexuality to gain a better economic standing. For men, sex is only a means to benefit themselves. Sex is seen as obligation for women through Addie’s relationship to Anse. It is obvious that Addie does not love Anse and considers ‘love’ to be just a word. Addie is used by Anse in order to have sex, and have babies to create more work hands out in the field. Addie understands her role is to manage the house and have babies. After she has a child with the minister, she gave Anse Dewey Dell and Vardaman to “negative Jewel” (1923). Addie had an obligation to have sex with Anse and give him more children in order to make up for her sexual relationship with another man. Faulkner presents that for Anse, the betrayal was not in sleeping with another man, but by losing an opportunity with...
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...Unfaithful Family In the novel As I Lay Dying William Faulkner creates an intense picture of betrayal within one family's struggle with death. Through his depiction of each character's betrayal, Faulkner writes a story entwined with the relationships of characters and their own emotions following Addie's death. Little to no communication produces intense barriers of resentment between family members. Individual needs top familial duties, though these selfish actions are disguised with the pretense of devotion. Faulkner highlights this family's corrupted nature to represent the cruel nature of man, and the irony of each character's treachery leading to their demise. Addie Bundren’s betrayal of Anse, her husband, is the cause for...
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...In the novel, As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner there is an underlying theme. Faulkner uses diction, characterization, and point of view to mock religion throughout the novel. He worded his sentences very carefully and it helped greatly to hint at just what he thought about religion. Faulkner’s use of these literary devices not only mocked religion, but also gave us a bit of insight into his views on religious people and their approach on life. Faulkner is able to start the mocking of religion with his use of specific diction. The characters in the novel are shown to be people who use religion and God to give authority to their own opinions. For example, Mr. Tull says that the Lord did not want him to spend so much time thinking to rationalize...
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...The novel, As I Lay Dying, has many conflicts. Choose one conflict in the novel and, in a well-developed essay, explore the sources of the conflict and how it contributes to the meaning of the novel as a whole. It is not the destination that matters, but the journey itself, as the proverb goes. As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner explores the hectic journey of the Bundrens as they seek to bury their mother, and valuable lessons are learned along the way. The origins of their journey lead the family to understand that while each person has a different personality and some personalities cooperate better than others, such a relationship cannot be forced. In this case, death is the catalyst which forces the family to embark on their tumultuous...
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...With the journey to Jefferson looming over the Bundren family, boundaries of sanity and insanity begin to haze. Darl, the main narrator of “As I Lay Dying”, borders on the edge of lunacy throughout the novel. He often has spasms of laughter, which seem to bear little relevance to the current situation, except to an exterior observer. Darl’s internal monologue, a constant stream of ideas, thoughts, and stories, expresses the audacity and the sheer madness his family is enduring. As the story progresses, many characters see Darl exhibiting signs of insanity, but to an observant eye, Darl may be the sanest of them all. In “As I Lay Dying”, Darl possesses the unique ability to perceive the feelings and thoughts of other characters. As a result of his perceptiveness, Darl has insightfulness into multiple characters lives; hence, how he understands the relation between Jewel and Addie and the pregnancy of Dewey Dell. Darl continually taunts Jewel about being a fatherless child and even mentions, “Jewels’ mother is a horse,” (151). Even with this knowledge, Darl only heckles and degrades the characters; therefore, causing them to ultimately categorize him as insane....
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