William Faulkner's "As I Lay Dying"

Paper Summary:

This paper outlines the ineffectual management of a family and impossibility of a stable, nuclear family while lacking bonds necessary for good relations such as love, loyalty and trust. The model family used to prove the thesis is the Bundren family from William Faulkner's "As I Lay Dying."

From the Paper:

"There are several intangible bonds that hold a family together. These bonds - which range from loyalty to love - act as the glue that solidifies and maintains the complex structure of the people and emotions that partake in a family. In William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying, the Bundren Family lacks several of these essential ties. The mother does not love her children, the husband is selfish, the daughter is secretive, and the sons each have their own ulterior motives. Such characteristics make the existence of a functional family nearly impossible. As demonstrated in As I Lay Dying, upholding a cohesive household demands love, altruism, and honesty, without which a family cannot be properly maintained."

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