Experiencing Salvation in as I Lay Dying

As I Lay Dying is a novel by William Faulkner that chronicles the journey of the Bundren family (Anse, Dewey Dell, Darl, Jewel, Cash, and Vardaman) to bury their recently deceased mother, Addie, in Jefferson. Throughout As I Lay Dying, Faulkner treats Darl as the de-facto narrator of the novel, endowing Darl with the most passages in the novel and endowing him with an omniscient perspective of the events chronicled in the book. Jewel, however, gets the opposite treatment from Faulkner; he only is designated one passage in the entire book and is known for being self-centered and close-minded. In terms of the motivation of traveling to Jefferson, Darl has none, while Jewel’s sole purpose is to give Addie a proper burial. By the end of the novel,

In As I Lay Dying, by William Faulkner the reader gets to see how hard life is for the Bundren family. The Bundren’s face many obstacles throughout the book and somehow manage to come through most of them okay. The family fulfills their desires along the way to relieve them of these struggles. The main theme in As I Lay Dying is family dysfunction, and this family dysfunction leads to Darl’s insanity.

One common thing that all of the religious characters in As I Lay Dying seem to share is that they are judgemental of others and their mistakes. This is especially true for Cora Tull and Reverend Whitfield, both of whom are very religious, but are also judgemental of others, especially the Bundrens, while ignoring their own lives and pasts. Faulkner’s portrayal of these religious characters reveals that those who are judgmental of the lives and choices of others should address their own failings before worrying about others. If you are someone who is described as religious you should not be judging others because god doesn’t li

“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your vision is clear, your whole body will be full of light” (). Ever since the creation of mankind, the eyes exist as the window to the soul. Taking one look into a person's eyes can leave you with more knowledge than ever thought imagined. Love, anger, lust, hatred, sympathy and guilt can all express themselves in just one glance. William Faulkner knew of this interesting trait and applied it to his 19___’s novel “As I Lay Dying”. Each character possesses their own unique traits and personalities which drive them to fulfill their end mission: burying their mother in Jefferson. To express their personalities, Faulkner incorporates a variety of similes and metaphors all relating to the eyes. This technique sheds light of their selfish ways. These selfish qualities, not the love for their mother, cause the Bundren children to succeed in their mother's dying wish.

She becomes a wife and a mother. She loves her children and they adore her. When she grows old they will take of her, and when she dies, they long for her the rest of their days. The concept of such a desired and completed journey of motherhood and womanhood is dismantled in William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying. On a spectrum of maternity, characters Cora Tull, Addie Bundren and her daughter Dewey Dell each represent a different degree. Cora is a dedicated mother, Addie struggles to accept the idea of motherhood, and Dewey Dell rejects the role altogether. Through these female characters, Faulkner also aims to point out the absurdity of the universal experience of womanhood.

One of the notable coping methods that Faulkner analyzes in his novel is that of denial and negotiation. Various characters utilize denial to escape the pain of the death of their mother, and this technique is best exemplified

    Analyzing character in a Faulkner novel is like trying to reach the bottom of a bottomless pit because Faulkner's characters often lack ration, speak in telegraphed stream-of-consciousness, and rarely if ever lend themselves to ready analysis.  This is particularly true in As I Lay Dying, a novel of a fragmented and dysfunctional family told through fragmented chapters.  Each character reveals their perspective in different chapters, but the perspectives are true to life in that though they all reveal information

A morally ambiguous character in As I Lay Dying is Anse Bundren. Anse Bundren’s dedication and determination to fulfil his wife’s wish counterpoises the fact that he is self-centered and neglectful towards others. With his two biggest goals in mind, burying his wife and getting a new set of teeth, Anse Bundren demonstrates the theme of self-interest vs. heroic actions. Most of the members of the Bundren family have goals at the end of their journey to Jefferson, but Anse’s two goals are both the most selfish and altruistic goals of the book.

The most significant part of As I Lay dying is located on Page 212 in the point of view from Darl, he states “Your mother was a horse, but who was your father, Jewel?” This is significant because this is Darl reveals his awareness of Addie's bad son, asking him who his father is. Darls verbal attack with Jewel, who has a history of being physical, leaves him infuriated. Jewels reaction makes Darl continue to taunt him . An exaple of Syntax is how Faulkner chooses to use italics at the end of Page 213

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 conversation to redefine gender roles is often dominated by polarized extremes. In As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner explores the social and psychological effects of the traditional southern female gender role with the character Addie Bundren. Through Addie’s narrative, Faulkner presents the struggles of a woman as she lives the oppressive consequences of expressing her sexuality: childbearing and motherhood. The same consequences are reflected in the destruction of the life of Addie’s unwed daughter, Dewey Dell. Through these women’s stories ,Faulkner reveals the damaging effect of institutional patriarchy in women’s lives as storyteller rather than feminist.

Faulkner’s use of southern gothic writing style helps the reader build a mental depiction of Miss Emily. When the town sent their ambassadors to discuss the taxes that were owed, Faulkner described Miss Emily as “bloated, like a body long submerged in motionless water” (2182). This description gives the reader the sense that the character is not well. Faulkner’s description that Miss Emily looked bloated achieves the desired effect on the reader to show how hideous she appears. This graphic description, combined with the author’s depressing description of the parlor (2182), makes the reader think of death. The reader gets the sense of being in a funeral parlor which helps to strengthen Faulkner’s narrative.

In the novel, As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner, the Bundren family suffers greatly on their journey to bury Addie. During their journey, Darl seems to be out of place, and is considered to be unusual by society. He is placed in a mental institute for burning a barn, acting as a scapegoat in the novel. 1. The entire Bundren family benefit from Darl’s fate.

In the novel As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner introduces the Bundren family, consisting of Anse Bundren and his children Cash, Darl, Jewel, Dewey Dell, and Vardaman, as they embark on a quest to bury their late mother, Addie Bundren, in the nearby town of Jefferson. Although some may see this novel as being optimistic, it can be seen through the fates of the characters that it actually has a pessimistic outlook.

“In this world, nothing is certain but death and taxes.” This quote by Benjamin Franklin is a mirror to Emily’s story as it begins with her death and then the reader is abruptly brought into the tax remission she received after the death of her father. This interesting yet confusing vignette is about a girl named Emily Grierson and her inconsiderate relation with the town, a man she loved, Homer Baron, and her Father. For Readers of Faulkner, it is truly apparent that his stories do not follow the pattern of the conventional beginning to the end of the story. This method of disorderly sequence of events along with the descriptive style tends to lead this story as if we are