As I Lay Dying
1. In As I Lay Dying, Faulkner’s experiments with interior monologue and mobile perspective allow us to see the Bundren family from multiple perspectives, including their own, their neighbors’, and outsiders’. Citing evidence from the text, make an argument for the dignity and/or absurdity of these characters. Are they (or any one of them) heroes? Or are they clownish goobers? * * * I wouldn’t go so far as to say they are clownish goobers. However, the Bundrens’ are certainly not heroes. Faulkner’s story depicts a parody of the typical heroic adventure—we follow a poor, dysfunctional Southern family and watch initial pretenses of familial love devolve into selfishness. This is no fairytale prince prancing through fantasy kingdoms, searching for their princess. The Bundrens’ journey to Jefferson serves as an ironic retelling of the typical hero’s journey, in which each Bundren ‘hero’ prevails through dramatic...