As I Lay Dying - Characters I

Question 1

cash

Answer 1

• the oldest son; about 30 years old
• carpenter
• logical, straightforward, but to a fault
• dedication to his family is detrimental
• meaning of his name: utility because it is easy to play with cash
• functional and useful person
• has insightful understandings about integrity
• thinks sanity/insanity is a relative idea

Question 2

darl

Answer 2

• one of the most trustworthy narrators
• very cerebral
• struggles with his own identity
• wonders what identity is?
• wonders who am i?
• he never established his own identity and now struggles with knowing who he is after his mother died
• has an existential crisis about identity

Question 3

jewel

Answer 3

• a man of action not words
• has a lot of animosity for his family
• represents the readers viewpoint towards the family
• addie’s favorite, but jewel is his own man
• stubbornly independent

Question 4

dewey dell

Answer 4

• 17; the only daughter; pregnant
• tired of being a woman in a man’s world
• even the baby’s father leaves her
• feels so alone except for darl crawling in her mind
• she is naive in a patriarchal society and becomes victimized
• lacks control and power over her environment
• stressed over whether or not she should have an abortion
• her major character arc is trying to get an abortion

Question 5

vardaman

Answer 5

• baby of the family who sees causation where there is none
• thinks his mother is a fish and tries to fish for his mom
• poor country b oy
• struggles to find his identity much like darl

Question 6

answers

Answer 6

• uses multiple narrators
• multiple perspectives all in first person
• insightful
• role of characters shows themes of work
• cash believes darl