William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying

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As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner “She would tell me what I owed to my children and to Anse and to God. I gave Anse the children. I did not ask for them. I did not even ask him for what he could have given me: not-Anse. That was my duty to him, to not ask that, and that duty I fulfilled. I would be; I would let him be the shape and echo of his world. That was more than he asked because he could not have asked for that and been Anse, using himself so with a word” (Faulkner, 174). In the novel, As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner, there are many passages that tend to be perplexing and difficult to understand, if not read closely by the reader. Although there are many passages in the novel that are compelling, the passage expressed by the deceased …show more content…

At the beginning of the passage where Addie said, “She would tell me what I owed my children to Anse and to God” (Faulkner, 174), she was referring to Cora. She felt that Cora was trying to control her life and tell her how it should be for a married woman. Although Addie didn’t agree on Cora’s ideas, she didn’t give her opinion to her about how she felt. Cora would even tell Addie that she wasn’t a true mother but Addie would think of her words as “quick and harmless” as she spoke (Faulkner, 173). Moreover, when Addie spoke about Anse and the children, she said that she never wanted them. Anse primarily forced Addie to have children so they could help with the essential farm duties just like any other basic family in the south in this time period would do. Additionally, out of all her children she birthed, the only one she cared for was Jewel. The affair she engaged in with Whitfield was the only time she found love in her life, and Jewel reminded her of that time of serenity. Throughout the book, the reader views Addie as a peaceful and innocent character while her children and husband are viewed as apathetic. In reality, Addie was a selfish individual because of the acts she explained in her chapter. Not to mention, there was another part of the passage where Addie elucidates her disinterest in Anse by saying, “I did not even ask

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