Sibling Rivalry in As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner - Research Paper Example

English literature 3 December Sibling Rivalry in As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner The works of William Faulkner are one of the best illustrations of the complexity of human nature and the intricacies that are involved in making an individual’s personality. Although Faulkner was of the belief that, “what little of psychology I know the characters I have invented and playing poker have taught me. Freud I’m not familiar with” (Gwynn 268) yet it is observed that his novels and short stories are renowned for psychological analysis of human behavior by using his characters as representatives of the rest of the human race. As Bockting also states, “Faulkner believed that ‘the problems of human heart…have nothing to do with what race you belong to…man whether he is black or white red or yellow still suffers the same anguishes, he has same aspirations his follies are the same follies, his triumphs are the same triumphs’” (24). Consequently it is observed that in the novel “As I Lay Dying” he explores many socio-political as well as human behavioral problems through his characters by incorporating a variety of thematic concerns. One of the major thematic concerns or the aspects of the novel is the sibling rivalry amongst the Bundrens. Moreover it is apparent that the common link that connects yet separates the five siblings is their mother Addie who is directly or indirectly the reason for mutual feelings of contempt and jealousy. Moreover in order to fully trace the problems that arose because of this rivalry in the lives of the Bundrens it is necessary to strategically analyze the brought up or life of each character. Addie is a complex demonstration of a woman who is brought up in a conservative society and desires to be freed from the shackles of the societal norms. However the restrains of the society have turned her into a mother who openly accepts her biased love for her children i.e. Cash and Jewel while she detests her other three i.e. Darl, Dewey Dell and Vardaman. Thus it is observed that of all the five siblings Cash was the most stable and practical individual. Though he loved his mother and mourned her death yet after the burial he was ready to get back to the real world. As it is stated in the novel as well that, “ Cash is filling up the holes he bored in the top of it. He is trimming out plugs for them, one at a time, the wood wet and hard to work. He could cut up a tin can and hide the holes and nobody wouldn’t know the difference. Wouldn’t mind, anyway (AILD 87). The care with which he builds the coffin shows his love yet later it is observed that his basic attraction for going to Jefferson was to get a gramophone. Moreover when jewel recues his mother’s coffin absence of Cash is again significant because it enlightens the readers about his feelings about his mother’s death i.e. once he is done with the mourning he is done for good. On the other hand the relationship between Addie, Jewel and Darl is observed to be a complex relationship based on hatred specifically because of the mother’s biased love for one son and hatred for the other. It is a natural reaction in women that at times when they suffer at the birth of one child they begin to blame the child for the hardship and the pain and the blame at times turns into resentment as was the case with Darl. Adie saw him as the reminder of her near death experience and since the day he was born her love was lost in that mist of pain and hatred. On the other hand although she was strict with Jewel yet she loved him because in a way her affair with Whitfield helped in reviving her spirits and Jewel reminded her of her time of freedom and happiness. This complex love is also apparent in the lines where it is stated that, “[Addie] cried hard, maybe because she had to cry so quiet; maybe because she felt the same way about tears she did about deceit, hating herself for doing it, hating him because she had to” (AILD 136). On contrary Addie’s relationship with Darl was almost non-existent and this was a major reason for Darl’s hatred for Jewel. Moreover the readers are made aware of this rivalry since the very beginning of the novel where it is mentioned, “I… ahead of him…Jewel’s…hat…above my own…jewel behind me…five feet apart…Jewel…in front” (AILD 3). Bockting also states that, “He feels threatened by his brother’s height and he attributes his idiosyncratic consequences to his physical characteristics” (113). Hence for Darl his height is intimidating as well as an explanation or an excuse for his mother’s peculiar love for Jewel as he says, “That’s why ma always whipped him and petted him more…that’s why she named him Jewel” (AILD 16). Carey is of the belief that, “As I Lay Dying manifests itself in the motion of Jewel and the stasis of Darl. Put in another way this clash of character movement and idea becomes the sibling rivalry between Darl and Jewel” (24). Therefore it can be assimilated that another reason for their contempt can also be the marked difference in their personalities as Jewel is highly goal oriented, and believes in taking charge of his life while though Darl sets goals as well but he lacks in knowing the means necessary to achieve them. Darl’s hero worship of Cash provides the readers with another interesting insight of Darl’s personality because one of the major reasons that he idealizes his brother is because of the love his mother bestows on Cash. Hence it can be inferred that this hero worship also symbolizes Darl’s wishful thinking i.e. if he can somehow be like his elder brother her mother might begin to love him. Though this wishful thinking does not make him a dreamer as it is apparent from the conversation between Darl and Vardaman where Vardaman asks, “Then what is your ma, Darl?” and he replies, “I haven’t got ere one,” Darl said. “Because if I had one, it is was. And if it was, it cant be is. Can it?” (AILD 195). This declaration shows that although he desires his mother’s affection yet he has learnt to live without it and he finds solace in admiring and loving Cash although he pays the price for that love as well when Cash betrays him in the end. Snell believes that, “in As I Lay Dying Faulkner’s configuration of two sons vying for their mother’s love implicitly reflect the unstable, volatile dynamics of classic sexual triangle. Two of the three principals, however, commit not the betrayal or adultery but incestual infidelity” (8). This comment highlights another aspect of sibling rivalry that is explored in the novel. Although Faulkner asserts that he was unaware of Freud yet Freud’s concept of oedipal complex is apparent over here as well though the rivalry is amongst the brothers rather than with the father. Moreover this is true for Jewel, Cash and Darl because even though Jewel and Cash were relatively civil to each other yet Jewel felt that he should have been the recipient of the love that was bestowed on Cash. However it is observed that readers only glimpse strains of rivalry yet it is not as pronounced as the rivalry between Darl and Jewel. For example, Sawing and knocking, and keeping the air always moving so fast on her face that when you’re tired you can’t breathe it, and that goddamn adze going One lick less. One lick less. One lick less until everybody that passes in the road will have to stop and see it and say what a fine carpenter he is (AILD 15). The aggression in Jewel in these lines can be perceived as a representation of Jewel’s jealousy over Cash’s ability to do something meaningful for their mother while he is unable to do the same. However the situation is remedied and the two brothers unite against their father towards the end of the novel where Cash says, “It’s all right," Cash said. "He earned the money…So I dont reckon that horse cost anybody anything except Jewel. I dont reckon we need worry” (AILD 135) there is a glimpse of mutual respect amongst the two of them here. Sibling rivalry is also observed in the relationship of Dewey Dell and Darl. Although she is a character who suffers because of her naivete yet she is not stupid. Moreover Darl is a character who simply out of spite for everyone relishes the power he holds over Dewey Dell because he knows her secrets. As it is states in the novel, “He said he knew without the words like he told me that ma is going to die without words, and I knew he knew because if he had said he knew with the words I would not have believed that he had been there and saw us” (AILD 27) and later it is mentioned, “And then I knew that I knew. I knew that as plain on that day as I knew about Dewey Dell on that day” (AILD 136). Here the rivalry has a different context because in Darl’s and Dewey Dells relationship manipulation and the contempt for that manipulation is the point of conflict between the two characters. This sort of relationship again shows the lack of familial bonding that was ever present in the Bundrens’ household and again Addie is to be blamed for her failure as a mother. Another explanation for this manipulation is presented by Kartiganer and Abadie who believe that, “the frequent repression in Faulkner’s fiction of female subjects by the males, a repression that is outgrowth of male’s own lack which compels him to solidify his identity by silencing the female” (9). . Hence it is observed that, because one person’s ignorance or failure of fulfilling her duty as a mother resulted in the suffering of the five children who were denied family support in the hour of need and hence they developed their own defense mechanisms to deal with the loss their mother. Adamowski also states, The novel speaks clearly enough of nurturing and the hatred of children, of children close to Addie as to overcome the barrier of otherness, and of children cast outside the circle of Addie’s wordless love. Cash is firmly within the circle and Jewel… exists in that nutritive circuit established between him and his mother by the calm flow of milk. As other children are the Others (“Faulkner journal” 40). Works Cited Bockting, Ineke. Character and Personality in the Novels of William Faulkner. Boston: University Press of America Inc., 1995. Print. Carey, Glenn O. Faulkner, the unappeased imagination: A collection of Critical Essays. California: University of California Press, 1980. Print. Faulkner, William. As I Lay Dying. New York: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1991. Print. Gwynn , Fredrick Landis. Faulkner in the University, Introduction by Douglas Day. Virginia: The University Press of Virginia, 1995. Print. Kartiganer, Donald M, and Ann J. Abadie. Faulkner and Psychology: Faulkner and Yoknapatawpha. Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi, 1994. Print. The Faulkner Journal Volume 19. Ohio: Ohio Northern University, 2004. Print. Snell, Susan. Phil Stone of Oxford: A Vicarious Life. Georgia: The University press of Georgia, 1991. Print. Read More