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Portrait of William Faulkner by Carl Van Vechten. Courtesy of American Memory at the Library of Congress.
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Subject Areas |
Literature and Language Arts
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American |
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Fiction |
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Time Required |
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Images of Faulkner and the South 1-2 class periods
Voices In As I Lay Dying 1-2 class periods
Crossing the River 1-2 class periods
Burying Addie’s Voice 1-2 class periods
Concluding the Novel 1-2 class periods
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Skills |
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Reading literary texts
Critical analysis
Literary interpretation
Historical interpretation
Internet skills
Writing skills (informal and formal)
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Additional Data |
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Date Created: 01/08/04
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Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying: Family Voices In As I Lay Dying
[Students should be assigned a certain portion of reading—at least the first
5-10 chapters—before starting the following activity]
Guiding Questions
- What does a character's voice reveal about themselves?
- What are the strengths and weaknesses of learning about something or someone
through multiple perspectives?
Learning Objectives
After completing the lessons in this unit, students will be able to:
- Understand and explore the use of multiple voices in narration
- Examine the Bundren family through the subjective evidence provided by a
multiplicity of characters
Preparing to Teach this Lesson
Review the curriculum unit overview and the lesson plan. Locate and bookmark suggested materials and other useful websites. If necessary, download and print out any documents you will use and duplicate copies as necessary for student viewing.
Activity
This activity explores the voices of As I Lay Dying, starting with the
first introductory chapters. The principles followed in this one class session
can then aid the student in reading the remainder of the novel, supplemented with
journal entries and other assignments according to the needs of the classroom.
Of crucial importance to this activity is the question: what is narrative voice?
Ask students to brainstorm what 'voice' might mean in terms of a novel—what
sorts of things would a person's voice reveal? Possible answers include age, education,
background, culture, religious and other kinds of beliefs, and so on. Other questions
students might consider include:
- What does it mean to have multiple voices or perspectives instead of just
one?
- Does each child's voice contain certain character traits of the parents?
If so, what are they?
- Do you believe the narrators? Do they have ulterior motives for the trip
to Jefferson? If so, what are they?
The following PDF worksheet, The
Many Voices of As I Lay Dying, has 15 rows—one for each voice
in the novel. The first group of voices has already been filled out—they
are the immediate members of the Bundren family: Anse, Addie, Cash, Darl, Dewey
Dell, Vardaman, and Jewel. The
Bundren Genealogy, available at William
Faulkner on the Web, via EDSITEment reviewed Internet
Public Library, lists the relationships of the family in a graphical format
(spoiler alert: the genealogy does give away Addie's relationship with Rev. Whitfield).
Students can begin filling out the character sheet, including adding new "voices"
as students come across them, and use the chart as they read to keep notes about
the various characters. As I Lay Dying has a total of 15 voices—who
are they? What do we know about them from others? What do they reveal about themselves?
What do they reveal (or conceal) about Addie (or Addie's position as a woman in
the South)? What do we learn about the setting and culture through the characters'
voices? What do we learn about the characters that they did not intentionally
reveal (either through their own voice or another's)?
Other questions for consideration:
Once students have been able to use the chart to examine the "big picture" of
As I Lay Dying, the form of the novel might be a little more apparent.
Who is the most frequent narrator? (answer: Darl) What happens to him in the end
of the novel? Why is that? How does he compare to the other members of his family?
Who are some central characters who are also the least frequent speakers? (answer:
Jewel and Addie, who both have just one monologue—see Lesson
4: Burying Addie's Voice for more detail on Addie's role) What does Faulkner
seem to be saying about the power—or the lack of it—in the act of narration?
How does this style of narration compare to a novel where there is one clear narrator
with authority? Without a central narrator, how does the process of reading change?
Can the reading process be compared to the journey to Jefferson? In what way?
Assessment:
As I Lay Dying has a total of 15 voices—ask students to write a detailed
profile of one character, citing examples from the book to support their claims.
Questions to get students started might include:
- What do they reveal about themselves?
- What do we know about them from others?
- What do we learn about the characters that they did not intentionally reveal
(either through their own voice or another's)?
- What is their role in the novel?
- What do they reveal (or conceal) about Addie (or Addie's position as a woman
in the South)?
- What do we learn about the setting and culture through the characters' voices?
- What major symbols are associated with the character, and what might they
mean?
Extending the Lesson:
If desired, the teacher can discuss the narrative style in terms of a shift
from Realism/Naturalism to Modernism in American fiction, where an objective
or even scientific narrative view shifts into the personal and subjective point
of view. In this conversation, students could then compare narrative perspective
with other novels read during the year.
Selected EDSITEment Websites
Internet Public Library
[http://www.ipl.org/]
Other Information
Standards Alignment
- NCSS-2
Time, continuity, and change. The ways human beings view themselves in and over time. more
- NCSS-4
Individual development and identity. more
- NCTE/IRA-1
Students read a wide range of print and nonprint texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary works. more
- NCTE/IRA-2
Students read a wide range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an understanding of the many dimensions (e.g., philosophical, ethical, aesthetic) of human experience. more
- NCTE/IRA-3
Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes. more
- NCTE/IRA-7
Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions, and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate, and synthesize data from a variety of sources (e.g., print and nonprint texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their purpose and audience. more
- NCTE/IRA-8
Students use a variety of technological and information resources (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge. more
- NCTE/IRA-9
Students develop an understanding of and respect for diversity in language use, patterns, and dialects across cultures, ethnic groups, geographic regions, and social roles.
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