Within As I Lay Dying, Darl Bundren exhibits abnormal behavior that the other characters in the novel claim as insane, yet no one investigates the origins that cause his apparent madness. However, Faulkner believes that Darl has always been “mad” (Wiley). One factor that leads to the belief of Darl’s insanity is his lack of a maternal influence; Addie rejects Darl from his conception and favors Jewel over Darl in her heart. Because of this maternal absence, her death causes Darl to question his own existence in comparison to others. Another feature to examine is the fact that his perceptions allow him to delve deeper into thought and are of an obsessive nature, unlike the other Bundrens.
A key influence to Darl’s supposed insanity is maternal …show more content…
The jealousy that develops from watching Jewel obtain all of Addie’s maternal love encompasses Darl, so he desperately acts to create the void within Jewel that Darl himself had created within Addie. As a result, the two brothers have consistent conflict throughout the novel because they are each fighting for their mother’s love. Therefore, Darl attempts to create a permanent distance between Addie and her “beloved son” by means of losing the coffin in a strong river current and committing arson on the Gillespie farm (Backman 64). These acts, particularly the arson, cause the rest of the Bundrens to commit Darl to the Jackson asylum because they believe that he “went crazy” on the journey to Jefferson (Faulkner …show more content…
His eyes convey this “disturb[ing]” sense and cause many people to feel uncomfortable (Pettey 29). His “eyes full of the land” (Faulkner 36), allow him to understand characteristics of the world on deeper levels and permit him to piece together information that is not readily available to the rest of the community. The ability of this supposed omniscience is displayed throughout Darl’s narrations, namely Addie’s death scene, the coffin’s completion, and the disclosure of his family’s various secrets. This omniscience also allows Darl to perceive the trek to Jefferson as an “absurd” representation of humanity (Volpe 137). Darl contemplates whether he——or any man for that matter——can escape the unending paradox of existence (Pettey 33-34). Darl desperately wishes to detach himself from the earthly world, but he cannot escape from his own obsessive thoughts and cycling perceptions (34). He becomes mentally exhausted from the entire ordeal and eventually achieves the detachment he desires. His final narration depicts this separation of Darl’s mental capacity and his physical body. Darl refers to himself with “an even mix of first, second and third person” pronouns and cannot seem to identify himself other than as the narrator, causing him to seem insane
A key influence to Darl’s supposed insanity is maternal …show more content…
The jealousy that develops from watching Jewel obtain all of Addie’s maternal love encompasses Darl, so he desperately acts to create the void within Jewel that Darl himself had created within Addie. As a result, the two brothers have consistent conflict throughout the novel because they are each fighting for their mother’s love. Therefore, Darl attempts to create a permanent distance between Addie and her “beloved son” by means of losing the coffin in a strong river current and committing arson on the Gillespie farm (Backman 64). These acts, particularly the arson, cause the rest of the Bundrens to commit Darl to the Jackson asylum because they believe that he “went crazy” on the journey to Jefferson (Faulkner …show more content…
His eyes convey this “disturb[ing]” sense and cause many people to feel uncomfortable (Pettey 29). His “eyes full of the land” (Faulkner 36), allow him to understand characteristics of the world on deeper levels and permit him to piece together information that is not readily available to the rest of the community. The ability of this supposed omniscience is displayed throughout Darl’s narrations, namely Addie’s death scene, the coffin’s completion, and the disclosure of his family’s various secrets. This omniscience also allows Darl to perceive the trek to Jefferson as an “absurd” representation of humanity (Volpe 137). Darl contemplates whether he——or any man for that matter——can escape the unending paradox of existence (Pettey 33-34). Darl desperately wishes to detach himself from the earthly world, but he cannot escape from his own obsessive thoughts and cycling perceptions (34). He becomes mentally exhausted from the entire ordeal and eventually achieves the detachment he desires. His final narration depicts this separation of Darl’s mental capacity and his physical body. Darl refers to himself with “an even mix of first, second and third person” pronouns and cannot seem to identify himself other than as the narrator, causing him to seem insane