As I Lay Dying: The Heroically Clownish Bundrens
The Heroically Clownish Bundrens
Through a myriad of interior monologues and shifting perspectives, William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying follows the dysfunctional Bundren family as try to fulfill Addie's dying wish. Told through the perspectives of the Bundrens, their neighbors, and seemingly unrelated outsiders, Faulkner's story paints a very complex and disturbing picture of the Bundren family, revealing both the dignity and absurdity of each member. This blog aims to analyze Faulkner's portrayal of the Bundrens, explaining how he paints them as tragically heroic yet clownish goobers.
The neighbors' and outsiders' perspectives further highlight the absurdity of the Bundrens, criticizing the family for their peculiar, foolish, and often pointless behavior. Seeing the Bundrens' efforts to transport Addie's body as misguided and sinful, Cora Tull says, "It's a judgement on them. I told them that if they put their trust in the Lord, it would be all right, but they are stubborn as mules." Viewing the Bundren family's journey to fulfill their mother's dying wish as unfaithful to God's ability to guide Addie to the afterlife, Cora criticizes their foolish and pointless endeavor, emphasizing that the family's trials represent God's judgement/punishment. Her condemnation truly underscores the general view of the Bundrens as these foolish, clownish, and blasphemous goobers, turning their tragic heroic journey into a circus show.
The loyal Jewel adds even more absurdity masked as heroism. Fiercely devoted to Addie, Jewel even willingly risks his life to try and save her coffin from the flood. However, his devotion to Addie is ironically paired with his detachment from the rest of the Bundren family. While we barely have any chapters on Jewel's perspective, we see that he has a closer relationship with his horse than the Bundrens through other perspectives, especially Darl's. In addition, Addie highlights Jewel's absurdity when she says, "He is my cross and he will be my salvation." Portraying Jewel as both her object of blind, devoted worship and her savior, Addie shows the absurdity of Jewel: a contradictory existence that is both a holy savior and a sinful child created out of wedlock.
Despite the Bundrens' absurdity, they also show moments of genuine dignity and heroism. Anse, despite the harsh weather and his laziness, old injuries, and self-interest, decides to uphold his promise to bury Addie in Jefferson. This stubborn persistence can be viewed as a form of tragic heroism because he sacrifices the well-being of the Bundren family to fulfill his final promise. However, since Anse can never do anything right, his futile persistence is not just noble but laughable, treading on the boundary between the Bundrens' absurdity and dignity. Cash also walks upon this same line, persistently building and transporting Addie's coffin yet breaking his leg, losing his savings, and having his correct opinions ignored during the family's journey. Ultimately, the Bundrens in Faulkner's As I Lay Dying are neither heroes nor clowns, but a blend of both: they are heroic clownish goobers.
As we continue and finish As I Lay Dying, I wonder what other moments of heroism and absurdity we will observe from the Bundrens. I wonder if Faulkner also uses the horse, fish, buzzard, and other motifs in part to add a more comical and theatrical aspect to the story, turning the Bundren family's tragic hero's journey into a silly spectacle. By the way, we should totally watch the As I Lay Dying movie.
- Max Bolton
This is a very funny post, Max. I agree that there definitely some poetic irony around the Bundren's undergoing all this hardship for a mother who might never have cared about most of them. While I do feel a little for Anse for unknowingly fulfilling the last promise of his unfaithful wife, I suspect he might have some ulterior motives regarding his teeth and things like that. Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteHi Max, great post. I really like the way you lean heavily into the family dysfunction of the Bundrens. While it may be somewhat odd to think of them that way at first, dysfunctional families have long been a source of comedic interest (you don't need to look any further than Family Guy to see that) and the way this book paints them in a grim light might prevent an initial reaction of humor, but as one reads deeper into the absurdityy of the situation it becomes something hilarious. Great post!
ReplyDeleteHey Max! I really think that you've captured the 'edgy' and sometimes grotesque humor that is present throughout the book. William Faukner pretty commonly utilizes lots of black comedy in his literary works, but I believe that the Bundren's often overlooked heroic traits are just as important. Great job in including both polar aspects of his sotry in your blog!
ReplyDeleteAs you read modernist literature like As I Lay Dying (or anything written in POV), it's always important to consider how others around the narrator can interpret things differently. When reframed within an outside perspective, the Bundrens definitely seem like a bunch of clowns from the countryside carrying around a rotting body in a coffin. It's all a part of Faulkner's ironic dark humor, and your post does a good job of capturing this brilliantly satirical vibe. Good post!
ReplyDeleteHey Max, great post. This was such an entertaining and insightful read! I love how you balance the tragic and the absurd in your analysis (calling the Bundrens “heroic clownish goobers” feels oddly perfect). Your take on Jewel as both Addie’s cross and salvation really captures how Faulkner plays with contradiction to build complexity. I also appreciate how you brought in the outsiders’ views, like Cora’s, to highlight the satirical lens of the novel. The idea that the journey is both a noble quest and a traveling circus show is spot-on. And yes, we absolutely need to watch the movie after finishing the book!
ReplyDeleteHey Max! I wasn't expecting someone to point out the heroic parts of Jewel, Anse, and Cash. In many ways, their small heroic actions are more representative of what real people do. I really like the like about the characters being a blend of heroes and clowns, and I think thats a pretty accurate representation of humanity.
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