Faulkner's Man-Dominated Novel - as I Lay Dying

In Faulkner's man-dominated novel As I Lay Dying the females characters play a harsh, almost cruel role throughout the story. Dewey Dell, the only daughter of the family is 17 and pregnant, an action not only looked down upon in the south, but by the Christian religion that surrounds the family. Addie, a wife loathsome of her whole family, with her one last wish revengeful on the entire family. Though all the characters have actions and attributes that can be looked down upon, the characterization of Dewey Dell and Addie is punishing, yet we feel bad for them at the same time.

"She was pretty in a kind of sullen, awkward way, and she looked a sight better in her gingham dress and her own complexion than she would after she bought whatever she would finally buy" Dewey Dell is a teenager, described with a sprawl of black hair, dark eyes, a strong voice, and a demeanor that seems unapproachable to anyone from an outside view. On the journey to Jackson we feel bad for her, but yet are overcome with her also self-centered intensions. She can only think of one thing, getting an abortion. As these desires become stronger he dilemma eclipses even the grief she feels towards her mothers death, as she believes that an abortion will be the cure to all of her problems. To add to her dilemma, she keeps her pregnancy a secret from the family. The Bundren family had a way of alienating each of its members for any attribute that made them different, Dewey Dell's secret pregnancy furthered her alienation, robbing her of her already minimal ability to connect with the other members of the family. As she struggles to accept what is happening to her she isolates herself, with the internal conflict of her desire not to become a mother and follow in the same unhappy footsteps as Addie. As her internal conflict grows, so does her external conflict throughout the book, her ability to maintain her autonomy and free will. Throughout the story she is taken advantage of, MacGowan sells her fake instead of real pills, Anse steals her ten dollars for an abortion, and at the root of it all Lafe impregnates her and ultimately leaves her to fend for herself. These actions reflect back on her ideals of men, describing them with suspicion of their actions and eventual desire to hurt her. The Bundrens' neighbor observes, "I can feel the gal watching me like I had made to touch her," and when she mentions Lafe, she says, "I could not help it" as if she did not actually choose to sleep with him. Through her relationships with other people and herself Dewey Dell is characterized in a manner that make us feel bad for her, due to the fact that she is confused, desperate to regain her pride, guilty, and alone.

"It's because I am alone. If I could just feel it, it would be different because I would not be alone. But if I were not alone, everybody would know" Throughout her thoughts and actions Faulkner uses repletion