Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Entry #1

Faulkner’s book, As I Lay Dying, seems all right. The chapters (if you can even call them that) are quite short, and it is easy to break down the book into many different parts. Also, I like how the author uses different perspectives when writing the book. I always liked stories that used that. I remember I liked the Animorphs series when I was in elementary school because of that. It just makes me feel like I can have a more complete view of the world or situation when I see it through different people with very different personalities. Not only do we get a slice of each character’s personality, but we also get to experience personalities that are very different from the ones that we normally experience. At least, that’s the case with me anyways. The people that I see generally tend to think very differently from the way people in the novel think (I’m basing this assumption on how people act and their backgrounds).

There are some thoughts that I had on this first section of the novel. I’m not sure that I agree with the husband’s decision to work on the box-thing so loudly when his wife is deathly ill. In fact, I’m sure that I disagree with him about it. I am sure that he has some very good intentions and just wants his wife to feel better. However, every bang on that piece of wood is probably a reminder to his wife that she is very sick and will most likely die. I think that if I were in his position, I would either stay by the side of my wife until she died or I would scour the countryside looking for a doctor of some sort that could possibly save my wife. I would not be merrily (perhaps not merrily) creating a coffin-thing for my wife. Perhaps working with his hands is his way of dealing with stress. However, he should first focus on helping his wife through her troubled times instead of trying to fix himself.

Also, I do not agree with one of the sons. That child’s name is Jewel. First of all, I would never name a son of mine something like “Jewel” even if Hell freezes over. The first time I read “Jewel” I thought it was a girl’s name, especially since he was talking to a horse. Everyone knows the scene in which the lonely girl out in the West pets her horse, talks to it, and says that he is the best friend that she has.

Anyways, I disagreed with Jewel even after finding out that he’s not a girl. He would not stay by his mom’s side because he could be making five dollars. That’s possibly the worst thing a son can do. If I was his dad, I would beat him into shape. However, sadly (I guess it’s not really sadly for me), there are Child Abuse Laws. Besides, if I was as incompetent as that dad, I think I would focus first on how I, instead of my children, could help my wife.

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