As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner is a novel about a family who travels to Jefferson, a town in Mississippi, to fulfill their deceased mother's wish to be buried there . The long journey reveals the true character and motivations of each family member. Along the way, several members commit altruistic acts and reveal their altruistic side, while others commit selfish acts triggered by purely personal motivations. Faulkner's style and storytelling are quite insightful and often push the reader to contemplate the true character of each family member. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner, he portrays characters driven by actions that benefit themselves, benefit others, and actions with unknown causes or justifications. Probably the most selfish character in the novel is Anse, the father of the Bundren family and Addie's wife. Anse presents himself as an unintelligent, greedy and indifferent character throughout the journey. Anse is more interested in disturbing his children and what they are doing than spending time comforting his wife during her last minutes. Anse uses Addie's desire to go to Jefferson to satisfy his motive: to buy new teeth. During the journey, Anse mentions his new teeth several times and shows indifference that his wife has just died and they will bury her. “But damn if he doesn't take some curious ways to prove it, it seems. But now I can give him teeth. It will be a comfort. He will." (Faulker 111) When Cash, one of Anse's sons, breaks his leg, Anse is too cheap to hire a doctor, so he pours cement on his leg to form a cast. Anse also steals Cash's money when he was unconscious from the pain of the injury. Furthermore, he forces another of his children, Jewel, to sell his beloved horse to pay for the family's trip, because Anse is too broke and stubborn to get a job together in Anse, Dewey Dell, the only daughter, undertakes several actions that benefit only herself. Dewey's motive is to buy “something” to fix her abortion for Jefferson. He also fails to show love towards her mother and her family, focusing her efforts on this reason. Dewey hates taking blame for her actions and does not even recognize her own pregnancy as her fault. When she meets the pharmacist in Jefferson, he tells her that if she has sex with him he will give her something to stop her miscarriage. She gladly accepts the deal, while her younger brother Vardaman waits for her outside. At the end of the novel, when her brother Darl is the only person who knows about her pregnancy, she attacks him and ultimately sends him to a mental institution. "Dewey Dell once again worries about her potential pregnancy, calling herself a "little tub of guts." (Slaughter) Addie Bundren, the mother and figure on whom the novel centers, also appears as a self-centered character. Life of Addie is full of pain and loneliness, and feels that having children will fundamentally give her meaning. However, Jewel and Dewey Dell are the only two children she cares about and who have given her happiness all her failed life seems to flow in his eyes, urgent, irremediable. (Faulkner 47) The rest he considers failures and meaningless births “And I knew I had Cash, I knew that living was terrible and that this was the answer.” (Faulker 171) Although Addie dies, she recounts several chapters and even admits that Anse was "dead to her" even though they were still married for ten years. Through both her actions and statements, we see that Addie is a completely self-centered and depressed mother and also abad wife. Despite the characters and selfish actions in the novel, there are many who also show selfless devotion to their family. Cash can undoubtedly be considered the most virtuous character in the entire book. (Padgett) At the beginning of As I Lay Dying, he is building a coffin for his mother in the rain while the rest of his family is inside. During the journey he shows compassion for his mother and family, especially his little brother Vardaman. She comforts him and constantly explains the families situation, especially what Addie's death means. When the family crosses a river, the cart falls and the coffin flies away. Cash manages to save him while breaking his leg again in the process. He suffers tremendous pain and his family makes him a makeshift cement cast in an attempt to help him, although he later has to have his leg amputated due to an infection. Throughout the entire journey, even in the most difficult and painful moments, he remains silent and never complains. His main focus is always on his mother's wish and the good of the family. Cash is an extremely selfless character, as demonstrated by his actions and attitude in the novel. Another character who shows altruism is Darl. Darl seems like something of a misfit in the family and tends to have a completely different attitude and thought process. He is intelligent and for the most part gets along well with others, but sometimes his strange way of thinking and interacting ultimately decides his fate. (Faulker's) He is very loyal during the journey and shows his dedication to his family and mother. While the family is in a barn, Darl decides to burn it down in an attempt to bury his mother there. Darl believes it's the best thing for her at the time, and he's actually doing it because he loves her. The coffin is saved and his plan fails. Later, the city police arrest him and his sister attacks him because he knew about her pregnancy. Darl knew about her pregnancy all along and didn't tell anyone, but his sister ultimately attacked him anyway. Along with Cash and Darl, Jewel also shows her love and selflessness throughout the novel. Jewel remains silent throughout much of the novel, unlike his brother Darl. We see Jewel's true character when she sells her beloved horse for her mother's burial. His father is too stingy to work or earn money, and Jewel sacrifices much of himself for his mother. He also protects Addie's coffin along the way and ensures its safety for Jefferson. Jewel also searches for Cash's tools that fell into the river out of love and respect. (Dudek) There really wasn't a need, but Jewel knew they were precious to Cash and wanted to make her brother happy. Later, Jewel believes that a man has insulted her family and almost starts fighting to defend them. Jewel's actions of courage and selflessness show her true good character throughout the journey. In addition to the numerous self-centered and altruistic actions present in the story, there are several characters whose true motivations are unknown or difficult to pinpoint. A great example of this is Vardaman. Vardaman is a confused and misguided boy whose exact age is not given. Vardaman's inability to understand is demonstrated in two major actions throughout the journey. First, he punches holes in his mother's coffin to try to allow her to breathe. Vardaman does not understand the principle of death. Next, he catches a fish and imagines that his dying mother is the fish. (Padgett) The next day he cuts the fish and thinks it is his dead mother. “Now it's cut to pieces, non-fish, non-blood on my hands and on my suit. It wasn't like that then. It hadn't happened then. And now it's going so far that I can't.