Stream Of Consciousness In As I Lay Dying By William Faulkner

As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner is the story of the Bundren family. The reader follows the quest of the Bundren’s before and after the death of the matriarch, Addie. Stream of Consciousness is used to relate from each Addie’s husband, their children, and several neighbors point-of-view. Through the consciousness of each of the characters the story of their “epic” journey to bury Addie in Jefferson and the events that ensue. The telling of the story each character’s true motives for traveling to Jefferson are revealed and they are not purely for their mother. This is why Faulkner chose to write this story in the such a difficult point of view. The reader cannot gain a full understanding of the conflict and the characters without having each of their points of view and knowing their innermost thoughts. “Stream of consciousness is a narrative form in which the author writes in a way …show more content…
These flaws include: Anse’s weaknesses as a husband and as head of the family, his clumsiness and laziness, and his selfishness. Anse is selfish when it comes to his dead wife and to his family. Characters outside of the family says numerous times that Addie is lucky to be free of Anse, especially Tull, who says on page 730, “Wherever she went, has her reward in being free of Anse Bundren.” In this same section Anse refuses the help of Tull’s team as another sign of his pride and selfishness, however this is not the worst example of his selfishness. That occurs when he trades Jewel’s horse, steals Dewey Dell’s abortion money for new teeth, and finds a new wife after borrowing her shovel to bury Addie. Even before Addie’s death Anse’s selfishness is more than evident. He refuses to call the doctor until it is too late because it will take the money for his new teeth, and then after her death, his only real reason for taking Addie to Jefferson to be buried is not because of her wishes, but because of those new