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A review by euryale
As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
5.0
“Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see.”
As I Lay Dying is a record of the Bundren family’s journey to bury Addie, the matriarch of the family, told from the perspectives of each member of the family and a handful of minor characters/witnesses. More than that, it’s about family and (mis)communication and identity. That means most of the significant growth you’re going to see is in the characters - how they respond to their mother’s death, other crises and so on.
Faulkner’s use of stream-of-consciousness suited those themes especially well. I think, especially in moments of crisis, the technique is realistic and provides us with the most accurate sense of who these people really are and what’s important to them. For Anse, it’s a goddamn set of teeth.
And it’s true, as some disgruntled readers have pointed out, absolutely nothing is handed to you. You don’t always immediately get the context for a remark. Nothing is ever really told to the reader - you’re shown about five different ways of looking at a scene and have to figure out what really happened (or who you trust). But that’s how you get at the truth - sideways and in fragments.
All of this just to get to the Darl question. Yeah, why is Darl so much more “articulate” than everyone else in the Bundren family and given the authority of an omniscient narrator? Is he really that nuts? And, my friend and I will disagree on this point - is he completely nuts the whole time? Jewel and Dewey Dell seem eager to be rid of Darl not because he says weird shit (with or without words), but because he knows things about them they’re not ready or willing to accept.
The bottom line: If you’re willing to do a little work and close reading, this novel will absolutely unfold for you.
The close friend who recommending this novel to me is one of the most intelligent, sharp witted, and critical thinkers I know, and she said she had to read it three times to really grasp what was going on. Luckily I was able to text her as I progressed so I think I have a pretty firm handle on the book after one try, but I’m definitely buying my own copy to re-read sometime.
Additionally, this is a great read for anyone interested in deconstructionism.
As I Lay Dying is a record of the Bundren family’s journey to bury Addie, the matriarch of the family, told from the perspectives of each member of the family and a handful of minor characters/witnesses. More than that, it’s about family and (mis)communication and identity. That means most of the significant growth you’re going to see is in the characters - how they respond to their mother’s death, other crises and so on.
Faulkner’s use of stream-of-consciousness suited those themes especially well. I think, especially in moments of crisis, the technique is realistic and provides us with the most accurate sense of who these people really are and what’s important to them. For Anse, it’s a goddamn set of teeth.
And it’s true, as some disgruntled readers have pointed out, absolutely nothing is handed to you. You don’t always immediately get the context for a remark. Nothing is ever really told to the reader - you’re shown about five different ways of looking at a scene and have to figure out what really happened (or who you trust). But that’s how you get at the truth - sideways and in fragments.
All of this just to get to the Darl question. Yeah, why is Darl so much more “articulate” than everyone else in the Bundren family and given the authority of an omniscient narrator? Is he really that nuts? And, my friend and I will disagree on this point - is he completely nuts the whole time? Jewel and Dewey Dell seem eager to be rid of Darl not because he says weird shit (with or without words), but because he knows things about them they’re not ready or willing to accept.
The bottom line: If you’re willing to do a little work and close reading, this novel will absolutely unfold for you.
The close friend who recommending this novel to me is one of the most intelligent, sharp witted, and critical thinkers I know, and she said she had to read it three times to really grasp what was going on. Luckily I was able to text her as I progressed so I think I have a pretty firm handle on the book after one try, but I’m definitely buying my own copy to re-read sometime.
Additionally, this is a great read for anyone interested in deconstructionism.