Reading As I Lay Dying Literature Links
A lot of students complain that they "don't get it." If they do get it, that is, the plot and such, they wonder what they're supposed to be getting out of it. Well, let me assure you, it's not Macbeth and it's not Inferno. There's nothing particularly deep or profound here. So don't go looking for the great cosmic implications of Faulkner's novel. Yes, there are some beautiful and profound reflections upon life and death, but they come infrequently, and most of them probably won't change your life. So, I herewith submit my suggestions for reading this great book.
| Remember that its tone is largely comic. It's black comedy, to be sure, but it's funny. The Bundren clan is singularly cursed with bad luck, and the various incidents--the flood, the barn burning, Dewey's pregnancy, her encounter with the sleazy druggist, can all be seen as part of a weird and wonderful comic drama. Vardaman's conflation of the fish with his mother is both tragic and laughable, but it's not deep and fraught with symbolism. Vardaman is just slow. |
| Love the language. The poetry that spouts forth from Darl and Dewey Dell and, occasionally, Vardaman is just wonderful. Though these are largely uneducated people, their fantastic (read "fantasy") stream-of-consciousness outbursts are beautiful and mezmerizing. Enjoy these parts and revel in them. Don't try, though, to pick them apart for meaning in EVERY WORD. |
| Separate the inner monologues from what the characters actually SAY. While Darl's interior thoughts may be rich, detailed, and insightful, his actual WORDS to Dewey Dell and Jewell are dull, plodding, and pedestrian. How, then, do others see Darl? Can we look at these characters only from the outside, or do their monologues overcome them? |
| Note the opinions of people from the outside. Tull and Peabody, Samson, the druggist in Jefferson, and a few others give us a kind of objective perspective on this clan. They're nuts--especially Darl. |
| Remember that a lot of this is in flashback. For instance, when Dewey Dell is narrating the cotton-picking episode, she's actually standing at her mother's bedside, fanning her. Pay attention to whether a character is using past or present tense. It's important. |
| Above all, just enjoy it. We've been so long trained to examine every word, line, and metaphor that we forget that some fiction is just fun to read. Now, while Faulkner may be hugely intimidating at times, this book is not one of those times. It's a relatively light piece compared to his really HEAVY work, so you should just take it for what it is. |
| Finally, don't look for an answer to EVERY question. We may never find out exactly what relationship Kate and Eula have to Cora, but does it really matter? We know that she knows them and that they have opinions. |