Faulkner was born in Mississippi and spent almost his whole life there, in Lafayette County. This region served as example for his fictional Yoknapatawpha County, in which some of his novels are set. One of those is "As I Lay Dying" from 1930. It is the story of the Bundren family and its journey to Jefferson City to bury the wife and mother Addie, who dies in the first half of the novel. Their journey is made difficult due to several complications and incidents and hence gives insights into the characters thoughts and intentions.
In this work, Faulkner extended his complex methods which he had developed in his earlier books "Sartoris" and "The Sound and the Fury" both from 1929. These methods include an extensive use of irony. It serves to reveal the "profound similarities or ironic contrasts between the modern world and earlier times" and was part of Faulkner's experimental attempts to articulate the inexpressible aspects of individual psychology. In the following, I would like to examine the novel for this extensive application of irony by showing how it is created, and furthermore, explain its purpose, which is to bring the real personalities of the individual characters to light.
Table of Contents
Irony in Faulkner
1. Introduction
2. Analysis of the Story
2.1 Noah and Anse Bundren
2.2 The Ark and the Coffin
2.3 The Flood and the Journey
2.4 Conclusion
3. Analysis of Individual Characters
3.1 Anse Bundren
3.2 Cora Tull
3.3 Dewey Dell Bundren
3.4 Addie Bundren
3.5 Jewel Bundren
3.6 Darl Bundren
3.7 Cash Bundren
3.8 Vardaman Bundren
4. Conclusion
5. Bibliography
5.1 Primary sources
5.2 Secondary sources
Irony in Faulkner
1. Introduction
In the 1920s, American economy experienced a boom. After World War I, a time of prosperity and wealth dawned and American society and culture underwent a period of change. This development of modernism was also reflected in American literature between 1912 and 1929. The literary activity between these years was marked by "creative explosion" and "can be regarded as one of the major ventures of modern literature" (Ruland and Bradury 274). The American novel of the 1920s is the figurehead of "one of the most remarkable periods of American literary history, and its hunger for new styles [and] new attitudes to human nature" (Ruland and Bradbury 314). Many writers of this experimental modernism decided "to root their work in a specific region" (Norton Anthology 667). The American South experienced "a resurgent Gothicism" (Fisher 149) and therefore "the term 'Southern Gothic' had become a synonym -or a cliché- for modern Southern literature" (Donaldson 567).
A modernist writer who was deeply committed to his native South was William Faulkner. He was the "major novelist [...] who grasped hold of the almost moribund tradition of American Southern fiction and brought it to the energy and resources of experimental modernism" (Ruland and Bradbury 308). Faulkner was born in Mississippi and spent almost his whole life there, in Lafayette County. This region served as example for his fictional Yoknapatawpha County, in which some of his novels are set. One of those is As I Lay Dying from 1930. It is the story of the Bundren family and its journey to Jefferson City to bury the wife and mother Addie, who dies in the first half of the novel. Their journey is made difficult due to several complications and incidents and hence gives insights into the characters thoughts and intentions. In this work, Faulkner extended his complex methods which he had developed in his earlier books Sartoris and The Sound and the Fury both from 1929 (Ruland and Bradbury 311). These methods include an extensive use of irony. It serves to reveal the "profound similarities or ironic contrasts between the modern world and earlier times" (Norton Anthology 664) and was part of Faulkner's "experimental attempts to articulate the inexpressible aspects of individual psychology" (Norton Anthology 995). In the following, I would like to examine the novel for this extensive application of irony by showing how it is created, and furthermore, explain its purpose, which is to bring the real personalities of the individual characters to light.
2. Analysis of the Story
Faulkner used big religious patterns in his novels and often he made use of Christianity in order to create irony (Blotner 14). The religious pattern we encounter in As I Lay Dying is the story of Noah and the Ark. One of the most famous events in the Bible serves as juxtaposition for the journey, because Faulkner "decided to expose the Bundren family to the two greatest disasters known to mankind: flood and fire" (Blotner 14). Such a juxtaposition is a typical technique for writers of the Southern Gothic which serves to emphasize the "cheapness of life" by comparing "the tragic with the humorous, the immense with the trivial, the scared with the bawdy, the whole soul of man with a materialistic detail" (Donaldson 567).
2.1 Noah and Anse Bundren
Taking a closer look to the main characters of the two stories, Noah and Anse Bundren, one can already see how the biblical allusion contributes to the irony which is created by this juxtaposition. From Noah it said in Genesis 6 that he "found favor in the eyes of the Lord" and that he was "a righteous man, blameless in his time" (Gen. 8:8.9). Here we have God's view of Noah. Concerning Anse Bundren, there is no direct testimony of another character about his righteousness, so he has to speak for himself: "I have done no wrong" (38). The other characters let assume that Anse is not how he imagined himself to be. Armstid once calls him "durn fool" (192) and Dewey Dell sais to him: "If you take it you are a thief" (255) and Anse took the money. Cora Tull goes even further and tells her husband that God wants to judge and warn Anse (72). In his own eyes, however, he is a righteous man, despite being not religious. He even sees himself as "the chosen of the Lord" (111) and that he was performing what God had told him to do (110), although it was the wish of his wife Addie to be buried in Jefferson (173). So Noah was righteous and got the direct command to prepare for the upcoming events, whereas Anse is righteous in his own eyes only and sees himself as chosen to perform the will of God, even though it was the will of his wife. Another instance may serve to underline the irony of the juxtaposition of these two characters. Noah was sure it was going to rain, because God told him that when he spoke to him, whereas Anse knew it because he can "see it with second-sight" (35). Again, Noah was connected to God and dependent on him, Anse however acts independently and relies on his own abilities.
2.2 The Ark and the Coffin
When God told Noah that he was going to punish mankind with the flood, he told Noah to build the ark and gave clear instructions how to do it. And thus Noah did, although there was no sign of rain at all. In Hebrews 11:7 it is said: "By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household". In As I Lay Dying it is Cash who is building. In the very first chapter we read about him making the coffin for his mother (4). An interesting similarity between these two can be seen when Darl sais about the coffin that "it will give her [Addie] confidence and comfort" (5). Why would a dead person feel confidence or comfort? I will comment on that aspect later in the analysis of Addie, but the connection to Noah and his family, feeling save in the ark, is clear and one can see again how biblical allusions are used to create irony.
The precision and the accuracy with which Cash makes the coffin mirrors the clear instructions of the building of the ark. He is even determined about which plank he uses for which part of the coffin: "Give me the plank [...] No the other one" (76). A difference between the ark and the coffin is that the first one was ready before the rain came, whereas Cash has to finish the building with rain rushing down (77) and with Addie Bundren already being dead (52). This contributes to the irony that the Bundren family is not prepared for the "flood". The last and maybe most obvious aspect about the ark and the coffin is the different purpose of the two "cases". The ark was supposed to encase life, the coffin is supposed to encase death (Blotner 16). Faulkner's comparison of these two generates a ridiculous irony. An interesting side note is also that the coffin can be seen as preserving "the function of the Gothic house, providing both character and setting" (Palmer 129). This will become clearer in the analysis of the character of Addie Bundren.
2.3 The Flood and the Journey
The depiction of the journey itself with the process of the flood show contrasts with the same result. "The voyage of Noah is from a low place to Mt. Ararat, where the processes of life may begin again. The voyage of Anse Bundren is from the high place on his "mountain" to the low place of the cemetery in Jefferson, where the last ritual of death is concluded." (Blotner 16). Peabody's anger, which he expresses towards Anse (43), explains that the Bundrens are living on a mountain. Several stories in the Bible give reason to believe that "going up" is something positive and that "going down" has a negative connotation. In Luke 10, for example, Jesus tells the parable of a man who "was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers" (Lk. 10:30).1 So the general conditions of the two journeys are the same: There is a mountain and there is a low place. But the directions are reversed. Faulkner uses the same basic conditions but creates the exact opposite of the biblical story of the flood.
This can also be seen when the two stories mention birds in connection with the journey. Noah used a dove to see whether there was dry land or a tree where the bird could rest. The dove is known to be a symbol of life and hope. In As I Lay Dying the buzzard occurs several times. Armstid mentions it three times in his passage and Darl tells us they "hang in soaring circles" (95). The buzzards symbol death and accompany the family on their journey. Again, Faulkner uses a negative symbol to mirror a positive aspect of Noah's story.
When the novel reports about the Bundren family trying to cross the river, several sentences give a clear hint about the connection to the biblical story. Here the narration by Tull serves as primary observer. Standing close to the river he says: "a fellow couldn't tell where was the river and where the land" (124). The biblical counterpart is clear: "The water prevailed more and more upon the earth, so that all the high mountains everywhere under the heavens were covered" (Gen. 7:19). Later in novel Tull tells Cora about the incident by the river. When he mentions the log which caused the wagon to fall over, Cora replies: "It was the hand of God" (153). So for her it was the judgement of God for Anse who sees himself as righteous, as we have already seen. Joseph Blotner comments on this event that "Noah the righteous had been sustained upon the bosom of the deep by the hand of God. Bundren the unrighteous hypocritical has been struck down by it" (Blotner 17). This can also be seen in the result of the two journeys. Genesis 8 tells us that Noah and his wife, his son's and their wives and all the animals in the ark survived the flood without any harm and losses. In As I Lay Dying each member of the Bundren family suffers, even Jewel's horse. Every family member has to give up something on the journey. Anse for example loses his mules and his farm equipment (189) and Jewel his horse in the trade with Snopes for his team (190). Both, the connection but also the contrast between the story of Noah and the Ark and Faulkner's depiction of the journey can be seen in these aspects.
2.4 Conclusion
In this first part of the analysis we saw how Faulkner uses the allusion to the biblical story of Noah and the ark. He selects the main aspects and characteristics of the story and twists them. The concept of the flood, the depiction of its main character, the items used, the whole process of the journey and also the results are turned upside down and lead to the creation of an irony that runs through the whole novel.
3. Analysis of Individual Characters
In As I Lay Dying"character presentation is the dominant structural element rather than traditional plot or narrative" (Alldredge 3). The novel's main component is "moving from the consciousness of one character to that of another" and is it not about a "pattern of events" but about a "pattern of individual existences" (Handy 437). The novel is not a rigid narration about the happenings on the journey of the Bundren family, but an insight into the minds of the characters who are, in any way, part of the journey. This causes questions and uncertainties in some parts, but a modernist literature is "notable for what it omits: the explanations, [...] connections, summaries and distancing that provide continuity, perspective, and security" (Norton Anthology 664). The polyphonic feature and the stream of consciousness of the 15 different narrators contribute to this image. However, it allows to examine the "intensity of human experience" and the characters as "participants of the journey" on the one hand and "their existence as living, experiencing beings" on the other, which leads to "the ironic quality of the difference" between these two perspectives (Handy 437). Betty Alldredge underlines this observation by saying that "irony is derived from the marked contrast between external events and internal reality for the several characters." (Alldredge 5). This internal reality determines "man's feelings, hopes, desires, aspirations, compulsions and obsessions, and ultimately his attitudes and actions towards his fellow man." (Handy 451). So this is how characterization works in As I Lay Dying - "characterization through the effects on other [...] characters" (Wagner 74). The role of Addie is of striking importance concerning this aspect: "The fifteen characters in their relationship with each other, especially with Addie [...] seem part of the world's mystery and irreducible complexity" (O'Conner 19).
In the following I would like to examine the different characters in the novel for this marked contrast between their external appearance and their internal experience or reality and also for the relationship towards Addie and show how these aspects contribute to the creation of irony.
3.1 Anse Bundren
The character of Anse Bundren was already discussed in chapter 2.1 and we saw the contrast between his self-awareness and how other characters think of him. Furthermore, there is no conformity between his words and his deeds. He says that the reason for the journey to Jefferson is that is was her wish to buried there and that he "tried to do as she would wish it" (106). This might be true in some parts, but it can be seen that this was only the trigger for Anse to do what his real concern is: "Now I can get them teeth" (52) is what he says shortly after Addie dies. It is interesting that he justifies this statement with the argument that it is God's will. Another time he uses religious language again in order to persuade himself of his righteousness. Anse says: "Nowhere in this sinful world can a honest, hardworking man profit" (110). I already mentioned the scene where he takes the money from Dewey Dell and she calls him a thief. This does not suit an honest man. It can not be said definitively whether Anse is a hardworking man or not. In the novel, however, there is no reference to him being working at all. The one who timbers the coffin is Cash and when he needs help to finish it in time he says: "Me and Vernon can finish it" (78). In the same section where he calls himself honest and hardworking, Anse refers to himself by saying that he did right but must earn the reward of it "by flouting hisself and his dead" (111). Yet again he mentions the teeth as comfort for himself. One can see that there is a lack of self-awareness and how this is mirrored in his attitudes and actions towards others. To make this point even clearer, I would like to give one last example. When Jewel decides to ride on his horse instead of being in the wagon, Anse says: "I told him not to bring that horse out of respect for his dead ma, because it wouldn't look right" (105). For me this argument is not that comprehensible and in some way weird. Furthermore, he himself does not respect Addie at all, because after she is buried, Anse comes with another woman to his children and utters: "Meet Mrs. Bundren" (261). Only a few days after his wife died, he finds he new woman. There is now sign of grief and it seems easy for him to replace Addie so shortly after she passed. This shows that Anse judges others for things he is doing even worse. As a result, irony is created by a discrepancy between his words and his own deeds, caused by a wrong self-awareness. And Anse is not the only character to whom this applies.
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1 Compare Psalm 22:29: "go down to the dust" and Proverbs 5:5: "go down to death".