Faulkner's As I Lay Dying: Part Five – These Unreliable Narrators

 

Another Gemini AI image.  I asked the AI to draw something symbolic of Faulkner's As I Lay Dying.

Read my earlier posts: [Part One]  [Part Two]  [Part Three]  [Part Four]

Faulkner's masterful use of narrators is central to the power of As I Lay Dying. But, by presenting the story through multiple perspectives, each fraught with its own biases, limitations, and psychological quirks, Faulkner creates a narrative landscape where the reliability of any single viewpoint is questionable. Can you believe everything you are told? Are you even told everything? I have my doubts, which is a marvelous thing that Faulkner intentionally creates in the reader's mind.

I admit that much of the “unreliability” in the novel is conjectural or based on interpretation rather than provable falsehoods. Whenever multiple characters narrate the same event they often give slightly different accounts, but it's frequently difficult to determine which, if any, is objectively "true." They are all just being themselves, uneducated and unimaginative. This ambiguity is a key aspect to Faulkner's narrative technique, challenging the very idea of objective truth in storytelling.

There is some deliberate concealing or fabricating of information in the novel, but the reliability of the characters is far more often compromised by their limited perspectives or psychological states. Vardaman, the youngest narrator, provides a prime example of this. His narrative sections are colored by his immature understanding of death and his confusion about the events unfolding around him. His famous, absurdist line "My mother is a fish" epitomizes how his unreliable perspective can lead to surreal and confusing narrative moments. His chapters challenge the reader to interpret events through the lens of a child's limited comprehension, adding both poignancy and ambiguity to the narrative.

At the other end of the spectrum, Darl is clearly the most articulate and reliable of the bunch, but Faulkner forces the reader question him as the story goes along. Initially, Darl possesses the ability to perceive events and emotions of others by somehow knowing things that he could not have known, exemplified by his knowledge of Dewey Dell's pregnancy without being told or by raising the question of Jewel's father, which, as far as we can tell from the story, only Addie and Whitfield know about. However, as the novel unfolds, Darl's mental state apparently deteriorates, certainly by the end, culminating in his committal to an asylum (warranted or not). This abrupt fall into madness renders his narration increasingly suspect, blurring the line between insight and delusion.

Anse, the family patriarch, presents a different kind of unreliability. His selfishness and displays a tendency to manipulate situations for his own benefit, rendering his narration inherently suspect. Anse's insistence on fulfilling Addie's supposed wish to be buried in Jefferson, which may or may not be genuine, is a prime example of how his narration might be skewed by his own desires to get a set of false teeth. The reader must constantly question whether Anse's actions and words are motivated by duty to his late wife or by his own self-interest. It's pretty clear the later is the case.

Even Addie, whose single chapter forms the emotional core of the novel, can be considered an unreliable narrator. Despite (or perhaps because of) her brutal honesty, Addie's reliability is questionable. Her deep cynicism and nihilism could be coloring her perceptions and memories. Moreover, the fact that she's narrating from beyond the grave adds an element of unreality to her account, raising questions about the nature of truth and perception in the novel.

Regarding her affair she states: “I hid nothing. I tried to deceive no one. I would not have cared. I merely took the precautions that he thought necessary for his sake, not for my safety, but just as I wore clothes in the world’s face.” (p. 155, Kindle edition) She is obviously asserting that she literally covered things up for the sake of Reverend Whitfield (the “he” in that sentence). But this comes immediately after claiming not to have hidden anything, which is, just as obviously, a lie. You cannot trust this woman who speaks to us from beyond her death.

Cora Tull, a neighbor of the Bundrens, offers yet another unreliable perspective. Her rigid moral and religious views significantly color her perceptions of the Bundren family, particularly Addie. Cora's misunderstanding of Addie's character and motivations demonstrates how her narration is limited by her own biases and lack of insight. Her chapters serve as a foil to Addie's own narrative, highlighting the gap between social perceptions and inner realities.

Reverend Whitfield, whose brief chapter confirms his affair with Addie, presents a self-serving rationalization of guilt for his actions. Though initially inspired to do so, he fails to confess his sin to Anse, conveniently choosing instead to believe that his unspoken confession to God is sufficient. This makes him an unreliable narrator motivated more by a desire to preserve his reputation than to tell the truth.

Yet another Gemini rendering of the novel.

Faulkner's use of these unreliable narrators serves several important purposes in the novel. It creates a pervasive sense of ambiguity and uncertainty. By presenting conflicting and often unreliable accounts, Faulkner forces the reader to actively engage with the text, piecing together the "truth" of events from fragmentary and sometimes contradictory information. This active engagement involves the process of trying to understand reality itself, with all its complexities and contradictions.

To a greater or lesser degree, the use of unreliable narrators also highlights the subjective nature of experience and the difficulty of ever fully knowing another person's mind or motivations. Each character's narration is shaped by their own experiences, biases and limitations, accentuating the idea that objective truth may be impossible to attain.

Pervasive unreliability articulates one of the novel's central themes: the inadequacy of language and individual perspective to fully capture reality. This theme is particularly evident in Addie's chapter, where she expresses her distrust of words and their ability to convey meaning accurately. It equally adds depth to the characterization in the novel. The unreliability of each narrator reveals something about their own psychology and worldview, providing insight into their motivations and inner lives.

The concept of unreliable narrators in As I Lay Dying is not merely a narrative technique but a fundamental aspect of the novel's exploration of truth, perception, and the human experience. By presenting a chorus of dubiously self-serving voices, Faulkner creates a realistic, complex narrative that resists easy interpretation and continues to reward close analysis and rereading. The novel's use of unreliable narrators challenges readers to question their own perceptions and assumptions, making the novel a profound meditation on the nature of truth and the limitations of human understanding.

The questions surrounding the reliability of Anse and Addie lead me to what is perhaps the basic premise of the novel, her supposed wish to be buried in Jefferson, as revealed most clearly to us in the sole chapter narrated by her, as I addressed in Part Two. Clearly, Faulkner's novel thrives on ambiguity, challenging readers to navigate a complex web of conflicting narratives and unreliable narrators. The veracity of Addie's supposed wish to be buried in Jefferson is yet another uncertainty.

The Bundren family's journey is predicated upon Anse's insistence that he must fulfill the final wish of his dead wife. His promise to her is the driving force behind the novel's action, propelling the family through a series of increasingly absurd and tragic events. However, as the narrative unfolded with this reading I began to question whether this wish ever truly existed.

The evidence for Addie's burial wish is tenuous at best. In Addie's own monologue, delivered from beyond the grave, she states, "And when Darl was born I asked Anse to promise to take me back to Jefferson when I died, because I knew that father had been right, even when he couldn't have known he was right anymore than I could have known I was wrong." She declares this wish emerges out of a desire for “revenge” due to Darl's birth. Exactly why is unclear except she alludes to her “aloneness” being “violated” by her children. Given the fact that Addie is cynical towards words and their meanings, not to mention that her confession oddly takes place after her death, this singular reference cannot be taken as definitive proof.

Even if we accept that Addie sought “revenge” for being impregnated with Darl, why would a trip to Jefferson be seen as her revenge? Perhaps Addie wanted nothing to do with the (her) Bundren family and preferred to be buried with “her people” instead. But, on this reading, I really came to doubt that Addie's revenge was simply to be buried elsewhere. It seems to me the most likely revenge would be the affair with Reverend Whitfield and fostering a child not of Anse's fathering.

Several key points support this interpretation, the most obvious is that no other character directly acknowledges Addie's wish ever happened to begin with. If it did, it was apparently never communicated to the family as a whole. This absence of confirmation from other narrators is significant in a novel where multiple perspectives often intersect.

Addie's chapter inherently raises questions about its reliability. The very nature of this posthumous narration places it in a realm beyond normal human experience, making it difficult to verify or trust. Instead, Anse's revealed alternate motivation (also unspoken to anyone) for new false teeth casts doubt on his earlier insistence on fulfilling Addie's supposed wish. It's plausible that Anse invented or exaggerated the burial request to justify the journey to Jefferson for his own purposes.

For my money, the fact that Addie's affair with Whitfield was the actual revenge for Darl's birth is compelling. This interpretation fits with Addie's complex feelings about motherhood and her marriage, as revealed in her chapter. This interpretation adds another dimension to our understanding of As I Lay Dying, emphasizing the extent to which Faulkner challenges readers to question every aspect of the narrative. It suggests that even the central premise of the story may be built on a foundation of deceit or misunderstanding.

If we accept this possibility, it transforms our reading of the novel, recasting the Bundrens' journey as an even more needless, absurd and futile endeavor. It would mean that the entire family's ordeal, with all its hardships and indignities, might be based on a lie or a misunderstanding, further emphasizing the novel's themes of miscommunication and the often nonsensical nature of human motivations. It very well could be that Addie's death was a convenient excuse for Anse to get false teeth. The heroic quest could all be as absurdly petty as that.

Throughout the novel, Anse repeatedly refers to his “promise” to Addie. Given Anse is a self-serving and manipulative person, the possibility that he exaggerated or even fabricated this wish to serve his own purposes - be it acquiring new teeth or finding a new wife - cannot be discounted. His insistence on the journey, despite the hardships it imposes on his family, could be seen as either stubborn dedication to a promise or a selfish pursuit of his own goals under the guise of fulfilling his wife's wishes.

I can't stress this enough. No other character in the novel seems to be aware of Addie's wish. While they are accepting or even supporting of it, none of the children or the neighbors or anyone else verifies it. This lack of corroboration from family members or neighbors adds another layer of doubt to the existence of the promise. If such an important dying wish had been made, one might expect it to have been known and discussed by others close to the family.

The ambiguity surrounding Addie's burial wish aligns perfectly with the novel's broader themes. It highlights the unreliability of language, a concept that Addie herself expresses disdain for in her monologue. It reveals the subjective nature of truth, demonstrating how reality can be shaped and reshaped by individual perception and motivation. Furthermore, it emphasizes the difficulty of truly knowing another person's mind, a recurring theme throughout the novel.

Given these factors, readers are left to consider multiple possibilities. Perhaps Addie did make the wish, and Anse, despite his flaws, is genuinely trying to fulfill it. Alternatively, while Addie might have made the wish, her “revenge” could have been something else entirely (Whitfield), but Anse is exploiting the idea of it for his own purposes. There's also the possibility that Addie never made the wish at all, and Anse invented it to justify the journey. Most likely, the truth lies somewhere in the murky territory between these possibilities, blurred by time, memory, and individual perception.

This ambiguity decisively engages the reader in active interpretation, reflecting the characters' own struggles to understand each other and their circumstances. Perhaps most importantly, the uncertainty surrounding Addie's burial wish reinforces the novel's exploration of truth, perception, and the limitations of language. By leaving this crucial plot point open to interpretation, Faulkner invites readers to grapple with the same questions of truth and perception that plague his characters. Like the Bundrens, we must navigate a world where motivations are unclear, words (and promises) are unreliable, and truth is elusive.

Far from being a flaw, the ambiguity surrounding Addie's burial wish in As I Lay Dying is a deliberate and masterful technique employed by Faulkner. This ambiguity, like so many elements in the novel, resists easy resolution, ensuring that this novel continues to provoke thought and discussion long after the final page is turned.

This fascinating puzzle of competing narratives coexists with, and strangely elevates, both the novel's bleak outlook and the largely unsympathetic, outright pathetic cast of misfit characters. Despite depicting a world of ignorance, hatred, and hopelessness, with Darl as a possible exception in his madness-tinged lucidity, the novel manages to be an immensely fascinating achievement. Its innovative narrative technique, profound thematic depth, and unflinching exploration of human nature create an intellectually and emotionally engaging experience.

The novel's ability to be simultaneously dark and captivating, to depict ignorance and hatred while inspiring deep reflection and bemusement, is a testament to Faulkner's artistic vision and skill. The tension between the novel's style and content, its exploration of family dynamics, death, and the search for meaning resonates across time and cultures, ensuring its continued relevance.

This fascinating problem of Addie's burial request and the questions it raises about truth, perception, and motivation are masterful. Faulkner's ability to transform a gloomy narrative populated by pathetic and/or ignorant characters into a work of profound insight and enduring relevance is a testament to his artistic genius. As I Lay Dying will continue to provoke thought, analysis, and admiration for generations to come, solidifying its place as one of the greatest novels in all of literature. I look forward to reading it again one day and to discovering even more of the treasurers Faulkner prepares for us in this strangely alluring puzzle of a tale.

~

A scholarly approach to the unreliability of the narrators is here.

Other interesting articles on the novel's unreliability are here and here. It seems many believe Anse is the most unreliable character in the novel, for various other reasons that I didn't even consider in my analysis.

More generally, an interesting review and discussion of the novel by two academics can be seen here.  

A less scholarly but nevertheless worthwhile general review is here.

I really enjoyed watching this lady's be-puzzled experience in reading the novel here.  This one is a lot of fun.

(Written with assistance from ChatGPT and Claude)