faulkner essay

Sanity Must Be It

In William Faulkner’s, As I Lay Dying, Addie died and told her family to bury her in Jefferson with the rest of her family. Of course, they listened and carried her dead body on a wagon. On their journey they encountered multiple complicated situations, which tested their limits of sanity and insanity. The second oldest son, Darl, came out as the sanest of them all. With the family’s own desires, it causes each person to become an insane person. Darl, however, cares for others and observe their actions to determine how they are doing. He was aware of his own existence and surroundings.

Anse, the father of the Bundren family, acts selfishly through his laziness and greed. For example, his family constantly does chores around the house, but he does not because “he was sick once from working in the sun the if he ever sweats, he will die”(17). His lethargy shows when he refuses to work because he will die from a drop of sweat. That is preposterous, considering he makes his children labor and make up for his part. In addition, Dewey Dell knew Darl burned down the barn and “she hadn’t said a word, hadn’t even looked at [Darl] when them fellows told him what they wanted and that they had come to get him”(237). Darl’s family wanted him gone because if he were taken away as an insane man, then Anse would not have to pay for the barn damages. Anse would do anything just to conserve their money and keep him out of trouble. His saved money only goes to his teeth, and would not spend a penny for anything. No one cares what may come about to another family member but what would happen to themselves. In the end, Anse and the other children’s selfishness led them to become psychotic people.

As an outsiders’ point of view, the Bundren family’s neighbors notice how Darl functions as the most normal of them all. For instance, Darl walks into Addie’s room to see how she is doing, and Cora says, “I always said Darl was different from those others. I always said he was the only one of them that had his mother’s nature, had any natural affection”(21). He cared for his mother unlike the others. Darl took time out of his day to see how his mother was coming along.