"Research Paper for As I Lay Dying"
The things people say and do are often bold illustrations of their values. In his 1950 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, William Faulkner said, "The young man or woman writing today has forgotten the problems of the human heart in the conflict with itself which alone can make good writing, because only that is worth writing about, worth the agony and sweat"(Faulkner). This statement allows Faulkner's readers to see that the author really believes in the morals and values that he instills in his characters of "As I Lay Dying." This novel, published in 1930, is a story about a southern family whose "journey to Jefferson is fraught with perils of fire and flood (from the rain-swollen Yoknapatawpha River) as well as the family members' inner feelings of grief and loss" (Padgett). Dr. Adam Frost, a renowned Faulkner biographer stated that Faulkner "was obsessed with voice ... often using interior monologues to bring his characters to life." These interior narrations emphasize what is really important to the novelist. Faulkner's obsession is evident in his novel "As I Lay Dying" through his emphasis on the values of hospitality, hard work, and self- sacrifice, as well as his portrayal of the
Working at night by lantern" (Faulkner 135). Faulkner further explains from where this isolation comes through Darl's observation of his mother at his brother's bedside:That night I found ma sitting beside the bed where he was sleeping, in the dark. I reckon it's because I must reach the fifty thousand dollar mark of dead accounts on my books before I can quit (Faulkner 43). His hospitable nature is evident when he says, "It'll be fine here. Addie's regret over her own adultery is illustrated as she says, I would think of the sin as garments which we would remove in order to shape and coerce the terrible blood to the forlorn echo o the dead word high in the air. Then I could be alright alone" (Faulkner 56). This quotation suggests that he cares more about helping others and doing what is best for them than he does about what would benefit him. This implies that Jewel, knowing that he wanted a horse badly, never even considered that there was any other way to get it than through his own hard work. Even though Addie's body has been dead for days, and Armstid's wife is yelling at him about the smell, Armstid still offers help and hospitality to the entire family. Faulkner uses the narrations of the Bundren boys to reveal that the Bundrens have a good work ethic. This excerpt actually shows both of the feelings of isolation and regret developed by Faulkner. Darl's actions only worsen the situation. He uses Peabody's sense of unselfishness and self sacrifice as a tool to help accomplish this goal. Faulkner allows the reader to find out who his characters are by giving them emotions and morals that the reader can relate to personally. A man seventy years old, weighing two hundred and odd pounds, being hauled up and down a damn mountain on a rope.
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Acceptance Essays
