Darl's Chiastic Shift In As I Lay Dying

Throughout the beginning of the novel Darl is displayed as a more rational figure until he reaches a chiasmic shift caused by Addie's death leads him to have a mentally altered mindset. This chiastic shift alters the entirety of the mood within As I Lay Dying. Given that Darl is the primary narrator in the book, his own chiasmic shift is what determines the outcome of events. Darl's own awareness of the other narrators and their ideals and own narrations of the events in As I Lay Dying additionally contributes to the timeline that leads to a point of Darl's own chiastic shift. Throughout As I Lay Dying, which Darl introduces, the clues to understanding what leads to the point of incursion in Darls chiastic shift can be detected simply from beginning to end. How is own narrative shifts alters the entirety of As I Lay Dying as the book has Darl as the focal point of the story. Additionally Darl being so aware of the ideals of other narrators is what allows the reader to gain an understanding of the …show more content…
Your mother was a horse, but who was your father”(212) this was the first time he had ever called Addie a horse, the other times he was simply thinking of the idea. This proves that early on in As I Lay Dying that Darl is beginning this chiastic shift. While Darls sanity is shifting throughout the entirety of the book, quite early it can be seen that he is away from himself, yet attached and connected to the thought process of others. This attachment to the other narrators, and their perspectives and interpretations of Addie's death all seem to be a repeated occurrence in Darls own narrative. Darl also calling Jewels horse his mother, through this darl is offering the information more than simply asking. Jewel happens to acknowledge this by labeling Darl a liar. Later on, Darl tells Jewel to save the horses in the burning barn to