On the Lack of Centralized Narration in Faulkner's As I Lay Dying

Certainly, the most stunning structural feature of As I Lay Dying is that there is not a narrator. Rather, each character involved takes on a portion of the narration, giving it his own particular voice, and conveying the events that take place through his own eyes. That method, while novel, is decidedly difficult for the reader. To an audience that has grown used to one person reciting to them a single story in a single voice, this change to a multiplicity of narrators, each highly developed and individualized, is both intriguing and intimidating.

First, it is intriguing simply because it is not usually done. For Faulkner to present his story from so many different viewpoints is analogous to a film director showing a scene from the angles of multiple cameras simultaneously. Even if the reader doesn't like it, he can't help but continue, for that approach is just so unknown that it has to be carried to fruition. In the world of film, incidentally, the approach mentioned above actually has a use, 3D. In order for a film to be viewed in all the dimensions present in reality, or, at least, the illusion thereof, it has to be filmed at different angles and overlapped. Likewise, in order for this story to be seen as close to "real" as it would have occurred, had it occurred, it has to be told from as many different viewpoints as witnessed it.

Secondly, it is intimidating, again, because it is not usually done. Many a story has been penned that can barely be read with one narrator, let alone fifteen. In addition, it is not entirely helpful that none of the characters presented is what one might call "right in the head." The closest is most likely Cash, whose compulsive carpentry and incessant attention to detail are by no means normal.