William Faulkner's self-proclaimed masterpiece, As I Lay Dying, originally published in 1930, is a fascinating exploration of the many voices found in a Southern family and community.The following lesson examines the novel's use of multiple voices in its narrative: "[Faulkner] often told his stories using multiple narratives, each with their own interests and biases, who allow us to piece The animal symbolism William Faulkner weaves throughout As I Lay Dying comes to the fore in this group of sections. In Section 44 of the last group of sections, while Jewel is still missing, Vardaman says there are now seven buzzards, which is the number of Bundren family members—two parents, five children (the novel treats Addie 's corpse as As I Lay Dying is told by fifteen different narrators over the course of fifty-nine narrative sections. The first section belongs to Darl Bundren, who introduces us to his brothers Cash and Jewel and his dying mother, Addie. The Bundrens live on a rural farm in Mississippi in the 1920s. Review. 'As I Lay Dying' is a classic novel by William Faulkner that was published in 1930. The story follows the Bundren family's attempt to fulfill the last wishes of their deceased matriarch, Addie Bundren and uses a skillful experimental style that Faulkner is today well-known for. As I Lay Dying Overview As I Lay Dying is a 1930 novel by American author William Faulkner. This Southern Gothic novel tells the story of the Bundren family in Mississippi as they attempt to transport the family matriarch's body and coffin to her hometown in Jefferson. E.L. Doctorow. E.L. Doctorow is the author most recently of All the Time in the World: New and Selected Stories, which appeared last year. His essay in this issue will appear in different form as the introduction to a new edition of As I Lay Dying, to be published by Modern Library in May. . (May 2012) Summary Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying. Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides. As I Lay Dying: Introduction A concise biography of William Faulkner plus historical and literary context for As I Lay Dying. As I Lay Dying: Plot Summary As I Lay Dying (1930) is a combination of comedy, horror, and compassion, a narrative woven from the inarticulate desires of a peasant family in conflict. It presents the conscious, unconscious, and sometimes hallucinatory impressions of the husband, daughter, and four sons of Addie Bundren, the long-suffering matriarch of her rural Mississippi As I Lay Dying. On a farm in Mississippi, Addie Bundren lies in bed watching her oldest son build her coffin, her husband having promised he'd fulfill her last request. Told in turns by kin, neighbors, strangers and even Addie herself, As I Lay Dying is the dark and heartrending tale of the Bundrens' odyssey. It was the book William Faulkner As I Lay Dying (1930) My mother is a fish. "This is a family of groundlings tied to the land, subject to the elements, to the seasons, and to natural disasters. Their lives are unmediated by culture, schooling, or money. It is as if the universe pressing down on them is created by themselves. Faulkner does a number of things in this novel cO64.