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As I lay dying imagery
The "as i lay dying" analysis
Literature and psychology essay
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Emily Dickinson wrote, “Much madness is divinest Sense/ To a discerning eye-“. Authors continually utilize the concept of madness or mental delusion as a tool to show how a certain character’s ideas and thought differ from the normalcy of society. In William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, Darl Bundren’s family mischaracterized his “eccentric behavior” as madness. In reality, Darl’s ability to perceive and comprehend surrounding situations at a much higher level than his family and friends lead him both to realize that the family’s journey to transport Addie’s coffin to Jefferson was fruitless and debilitating as well as determined that his family’s chaotic disorder was breaking them apart and their relationship was in dire need of mending. Darl’s …show more content…
Even from the beginning of the novel, Darl’s ability to comprehend the people around him is truly remarkable. While discussing Addie’s, their mother, inevitable fate, Darl states that “The reason you will not say it is, when you say it, even to yourself, you will know it is true: is that it?” (40). Although the rest of the family then condemns him for speaking so cruelly, they all still know that he is unfortunately correct about Addie. After Darl sets fire to the barn that contained Addie’s coffin, his family decided to report his actions and send him off to a mental institution. However, the family’s decision was only made due to the fact that they did not …show more content…
On several accounts throughout the novel, Darl is able to perceive what truly should be imperceptible. Darl seems to know about Dewey Dell’s unrighteous pregnancy as well as the fact that Jewel is not Anse’s son. However, his attempts to address such issues ultimately end with his family not understanding his desire to help them but rather that he is crazy in his beliefs. During once instance while Darl is aiding Cash’s broken leg, he explains attempts to reveal to Jewel the fact that Jewel has a different father than the rest of the Bundren people. However, Jewel can only answer back by saying “You goddamn lying son of a bitch” (213) and fails to see Darl’s worry. His family’s continual lack of proper response towards Darl’s attempts at compassion angers Darl. Hence Jewel’s failure to properly discuss the issue with Darl only leads Darl to think, “Jewel, I say, Who was your father Jewel? Goddamn you. Goddamn you” (213). Darl constantly is angered with the fact that no one is able to recognize his care and concern and treat him as if he is delusion. For these reasons, the Bundren’s perspective of Darl’s mental delusion or eccentric is the result of their inability to understand Darl’s compassion towards them and his desire to puzzle together the broken pieces
Yoknapatawpha County is a fictional county made up by William Faulkner in which As I Lay Dying takes place in; this is now the third novel to take place here. As I Lay Dying was one of the last novels written in the 1920’s by William Faulkner and within fifty-nine chapters, this novel features a unique narration of fifteen different first person narrators. Each chapter is written from that particular character’s perspective telling their version of what is happening in the novel, making this not only an interesting take on narration but a compelling read as well. Faulkner uses the characters use of language to help us identify and see glimpses into the lives of the Bundren family; through this we can understand the revenge and secrets from within the characters that is blind to the most if not all-remaining characters within the novel.
After Liesel learns how to read and write, she receives the task of , “completing a letter for homework” (Zusak 95). Eventually she arrives at the conclusion to write to her biological mother. Liesel then continues to write more letters, but lacks the money to purchase stamps in order to send them. On her birthday, she would give “a present from herself. She would gather all the accrued letters to her mother, stuff them into one envelope, and use just a tiny portion of the washing and ironing money to mail it” (Zusak 98). Consequently, Liesel’s foster mother, Rosa soon discovers the gap in her laundry payments. When enraged, Rosa makes Liesel break just by asking her about the missing money. It was Liesel’s guilt that made her feel the need to confess so easily to the crime.
In Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying the story of the Bundren family’s struggle to bury their mother is told. Her death begins this tragic journey as the family makes their way to Jefferson. Darl Bundren, one of her children, attempts to care for the family and just wants to assuage their suffering but despite his altruistic intentions he is pushed away by his family. This makes Darl the tragic hero because he is sent away albeit for a good reason. His hamartia which may be his caring is what led to his downfall. It can be interpreted instead that Darl was descending into insanity because he laughs when his mother dies and he sees things even when he is not there. He also fits the characteristics of a tragic hero because he is anomalous from the others in many ways; he is the most common
He is opposed to the family sitting by the bed and watching Addie die and cash sawing away at Anse's coffin. But at the same time, he tells Darl to shut up when Darl raises an objection to the three-dollar trip Addie tells them to make. Imagery is an integral part of any narrative. The multiple narratives and cross observations made in As I Lay Dying are complex and they consist of many spectrums. Imagery alone can be sufficient to give the reader a rich sense of emotion, but when it symbolizes the themes of the story and reflects on the characteristics of the narrator, it is truly a masterpiece.
A major transition occurs in the story when Darl is able to accurately describe his mother’s death, despite the fact that he and Jewel were miles away when the event actually took place. This gives the other characters a clear understanding of just what Darl’s powers entail. As a result, his family alienates him completely, as they do not want to risk Darl being a constant intrusion on their personal lives. One could argue that this fear is the true reason why the family chose to commit Darl to a psychiatric asylum, rather than his act of arson in burning down the barn.
“As I Lay Dying, read as the dramatic confrontation of words and actions, presents Faulkner’s allegory of the limits of talent” (Jacobi). William Faulkner uses many different themes that make this novel a great book. Faulkner shows his talent by uses different scenarios, which makes the book not only comedic but informational on the human mind. As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner is a great book that illustrates great themes and examples. Faulkner illustrates different character and theme dynamics throughout the entire novel, which makes the book a humorous yet emotional roller coaster. Faulkner illustrates the sense of identity, alienation, and the results of physical and mental death to show what he thinks of the human mind.
He shows no meaningful emotion about his mother’s death or the fact that she compared him to such a high being. Jewel’s segment is quick and does not provide the audience with too much insight or lie detector analysis. This correctly portrays Jewel’s mysterious sense because Faulkner also chooses to have most of Jewel’s character development narrated through another character’s point of view. The sense of mystery surrounds Jewel because it is left for the reader to determine if he is a Christ figure like Addie as claims “he is my cross and he will be my salvation. He will save me from the water and from the fire. Even though I have laid down my life, he will save me,” (Faulkner, 168). Ironically, in death, Jewel is Addie’s savior in both the ways she predicted. When the family is crossing the river after the flood, Jewel helps retrieve the coffin from the water. When Darl sets the barn on fire, Jewel runs in to the fire to save the coffin. Addie’s greatest sin ends up being her savior after she has laid down her life. However, parallel to this, North claims that Faulkner intends for Jewel to be an inverted Christ figure, he believes “instead of a divine birth, Jewel is born illegitimate. He is also, ironically, born of a “holy” father. He is by far the angriest character in the book, and his
In the early 1900s, the American South had very distinctive social classes: African Americans, poor white farmers, townspeople, and wealthy aristocrats. This class system is reflected in William Faulkner’s novel, As I Lay Dying, where the Bundrens a poor, white family, are on a quest to bury their now deceased wife and mother, Addie in the town of Jefferson. Taking a Marxist criticism approach to As I Lay Dying, readers notice how Faulkner’s use of characterization reveals how country folk are looked down upon by the wealthy, upper class townspeople.
Dill’s difficult life is at home with his family. We learn early on in the story that Dill is sent to live with his Aunt in Maycomb County for every summer. We also discovered that Dill does not have a father, when Dill replies to Scout’s question about a father,”I haven’t got one”(8), is what he answers. Having no father and having your mother send you away every year can harshly impact a child’s life. Even though Dill shows no noticeable sign of having a poor family life, we know that something catastrophic might happen to Dill in the long run if no one does anything to fix Dill’s problem.
Liesel’s mom leaves her with foster parents because she wishes to protect her from the fate she is enduring. The words Paula, Liesel’s mom, uses go against Hitler because she is a communist which resulted in her being taken away and Liesel to lose her mother and experience the loss of her. This shows Liesel experiences unhappiness because of her mother’s disappearance which is caused by the words she openly uses that contradicts Hitler.
Faulkner’s title phrase “As I Lay Dying” solicits many suspicions from potential readers of the novel. The phrase itself is not traditionally grammatical because it is not able to stand by itself. As a dependent clause, the phrase “As I Lay Dying” would typically serve as a noun, adjective, or adverb within the sentence and then be linked with a main clause. The absence of a main clause in the title causes the reader to speculate about the forthcoming plot of the novel.
But he's not quite ready to let go, stating the anger and pride is what had gotten him this far in life. Of course he always had his mother and his uncle Oscar, but they could never take the place of a father. In his last few years when Craig sees Rudell, he is noticeably weaker and sick. Ormand and Opal take care of Rudell until he is in the convalescent center where Craig sees his father for the last time. Rudell seemed a little confused, and forgetful.
This paper will discuss how Dewey Dell’s attitude towards Darl is continuous with her weird dreams. First, Dewey Dell is the fourth of five children from Addie’s Bundren. She is the only daughter of the family. One night, Darl, Cash, Dewey Dell and Vardaman went to New Hope.
Throughout the book, Dally does not care for his life too much, due to him constantly committing crimes and such. “I knew he would be dead, because Dallas Winston wanted to be dead and he always got what he wanted”(154). Finally, Dally has gotten what he wanted his whole life. The only view of life that he has, due to him thinking that he is not worth being alive. Dally does not see life as a good thing, but a dread similarly to Johnny’s thoughts on life. Johnny has wanted to die for most of his life. “‘I’ll kill myself or something’”(47). He believes life is not worth it for himself. Johnny thought that life does not matter and that if he kills himself then everything would be better. If Johnny lives in a better home, then he may not want to kill himself. Unlike before, Johnny and Dally are bonded by their
After Jewel, she gave birth to Dewey Dell and Vardaman, and explains this as paying an “emotional debt” that she owes to Anse, in which she is now free to die.... ... middle of paper ... ... Jewel views the trip to Jefferson as a way to fulfill his mother’s wish, while a detached Darl views it as ridiculous and time consuming, costing the Bundren family what little they do have. Jewel’s grief manifests itself as anger, and Darl’s inability to come to terms with Addie’s death leads him deeper into despair.