Diction In Faulkner's 'As I Lay Dying'

“There is more pleasure to building castles in the air than on the ground.” This quote by Edward Gibbon illustrates the intensity of writing and what gratification it can hold. When one writes, they are not confined to one certain formula. A person is able to express their thoughts and feelings in any way they choose. Language is a border for many people in that some cannot comprehend a certain language, understand how to use it, or recognize what is being said to them. On the other side of the border, they are not viewed as equals or as important compared to those who are not competing with this barrier. In his essay “Coming into Language,” Jimmy Santiago Baca uses his personal experiences to demonstrate how much

William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying presents a broken family whose members are not all sound of mind. They all present different ways in which their sense of self can be viewed as broken. Even though there is no forefront hero depicted within the novel there is definitely evidence that suggests that some of the heroes are capable of heroic characteristics. Though there is rampant selfishness and immorality some redeeming qualities of the Bundren family shine through.

The author of As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner, really contributes to the aspects of literature through his ability to tell a seemingly incredible story through only the “stream-of-consciousness” technique. Faulkner takes his insight beyond the piece, through other’s views and thoughts. Although the characters might be acting differently upon each subject or handling each action in opposite ways, the tone and theme that he uses really brings the whole piece to a perfect balance. In As I Lay Dying, Faulkner displays contradicting elements through the reactions of the family members towards the mother’s death with the use of dialogue, tone, imagery, and internal conflict.

The Bundren family from William Faulkner's As I lay Dying are a unique family, in that they don’t fit the mold of what most would think a family should be: a unit. They disconnect as a group, often saying one thing while thinking another. While Addie’s burial is the central reason for their journey to Jefferson, some family members have motives of their own. Evident in that half of them with the exception of Darl, Cash and Jewel have other reasons than to bury Addie in Jefferson.

The poet's voice need not merely be the record of man, it can be one of the props, the pillars to help him endure and prevail. (excerpt-Faulkner's Nobel Prize acceptance speech)

Faulkner's reason for creating A Rose For Emily could have been to serve as a medium, explaining his ideas and thoughts about the changes occurring in society. His use of diction Is used as an additional persuasion technique, and is meant to make the reader feel some sort of emotion from the words that they are reading. In the short story Faulkner’s use of diction in many places add another dimension to the events taking place, resulting in a more smoothly written piece with more highlighted themes. The use of tense diction when Emily goes to the pharmacy and nonchalantly has a back and forth with the shocked pharmacist, asking for “the best one you have,” and eventually settling on arsenic. The use of this form of diction sort of reflects

Most works of literature often use events and objects to display a deeper meaning to the current situation. In As I Lay Dying, by William Faulkner, there are many references that connect the Bundren family to mythological, Biblical, and classical allusions. Faulkner’s use of various types of allusions emphasizes the characters’ behavior and relationship to each other.

How does a child feel when their parents conceive destructive values and manipulative connotations? To any child a parent is the person that they look up to and in most cases look for encouragement. However, some parents tend to value destruction and their own self-gain more than the life of their child. Both William Faulkner’s “As I Lay Dying” and Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye” demonstrating a principle that when parents are bound to their twisted, manipulative, and even immoral values that their children will ultimately be the ones to pay the price as they either embrace the similar hollow values themselves or set out to fulfill their own desires through often times self-destructive means.

Language is a power tool for Darl, Dewey Dell, and Cash but for their mother Addie it is a limitation. She says, “words don’t ever fit even what they are trying to say at.” Addie believes that language is the experience and words will never match that. While the children feel defined by their language, she feels defined by experiences. She makes this clear when she describes a scene with Cora Tull, “And so when Cora Tull would tell me I was not a true mother, I would think how words go straight up in a thin line, quick and harmless, and how terribly doing goes along the earth.”

In 1930, As I Lay Dying, by William Faulkner, was published and the audienceimmediately started to question about it. Faulkner wrote this book over the course of six weeks.He wrote every day from midnight to 4:00 AM and said that every word he wrote stayed and hedid not change anything. As I Lay Dying is about Addie Bundren who is a mother and is ill andabout to die, two of her sons leave town and right after they leave, Addie dies. Her oldest son,Cash finishes the coffin he was making for her and when they are going to bury her where shewished to be buried, they get injured due to a flooding. As I Lay Dying has been banned inseveral school districts. It first started when the mother of a student read the book after her childcame home telling

As I lay dying is considered to some as one of the most notable novels of the twentieth century. Reading the book, when you analyze the structure that Faulkner instilled, this made the story very difficult to comprehend. To support my point, the story is composed of fifteen different points of view from characters in the story. The novel does not have any chapters whatsoever, but rather “sections” and each section looks into one point of view from the fifteen characters. Each section often switches from different events and settings in the story. Aside from the novel’s complications, the storyline was very intriguing due to the chain of events that happened.

Many mothers, regardless of age or situation, share sympathetic life ideals. They all share the common goal of raising their children wholesome; they want to create an environment of love, nurture, and support for their children as well. A mother’s effort to implant good values in her children is perpetual; they remain optimistic and hope that their children would eventually become prosperous. However, some women were not fit to be mothers. Thus, two different roles of a mother are portrayed in As I Lay Dying written by William Faulkner. Faulkner uses the literary technique of first person narrative with alternating perspectives. By doing so, Faulkner adds authenticity and the ability to relate (for some) to the two characters Addie

Exploring the Layers of Maternity and Southern Womanhood in William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying

The modern world is in the midst of reconstructing gender roles; debates about contraception, reproductive freedom, and female inequality are contentious and common. The majority now challenges the long established assertion that women’s bodies are the eminent domain of patriarchal control. In the past, a woman’s inability to control her reproductive choices could come with ruinous consequences. Proponents of patriarchal control argue against reproductive independence with rhetoric from religious texts and with anecdotes of ‘better days,’ when women were subservient. Often, literature about childbearing fails to acknowledge the possibility of women being uninterested in fulfilling the role of motherhood.

In the novel, Faulkner writes Addie’s character as someone who is always being faced with a conflict, and as a depressed woman living a miserable life. Addie’s biggest conflict is internal. Previous to Addie Bundren’s death, and before she is married to Anse Bundren, Addie is a school teacher with a miserable life, and a strong hatred for her job as a school teacher. According to the novel, the worst part about Addie’s job is the children; they never listen to her and due to this, she lives for the moments where she gets to scold them. Faulkner reveals Addie’s pure hatred for the children and