Blog Prompt 1

Overall, William Faulkner's as I lay dying is quite unconventional, it has a bizarre narrative style that makes it not only a tough read but even more so challenging to identify the hero's journey. However, I still believe that it is possible to trace this narrative pattern through the events and character arcs of the story. Despite the novel's use of mobile perspective, stream-of-consciousness interior monologue, fragmentation, and nonlinear plotting. These narrative techniques create a jumbled chronology and can distort the reader's understanding of certain events in the story, making it more challenging to follow the hero's journey as two or more characters can have opposing views or different perspectives with information they do or don't know.

However, the hero's journey is a common narrative pattern that is often recognized as a clear blueprint for storytelling. Even in works of literature that deviate from traditional storytelling techniques such as As I lay Dying. The hero's journey typically involves a hero who undergoes a series of trials and challenges, ultimately leading to a transformation or realization. In As I Lay Dying, the character of Cash is one example of a hero who undergoes such a journey.

Despite the novel's fragmented and nonlinear structure, Cash's journey can be traced through the events of the story. We know him as a skilled carpenter and craftsman, and his journey is marked by his determination to complete the coffin he is building for his mother, even as the family faces various challenges and obstacles on their journey to bury her. Cash's journey is fraught with difficulties, including his own injuries and the challenges posed by the other members of his family who seem like more obstacles than aids.

Ultimately, Cash's journey leads to a transformation of sorts, as he learns to accept the reality of his mother's death and the challenges his family faces. This transformation is evident in the closing lines of the novel, in which Cash reflects on his experiences and the lessons he has learned. This last chapter is immensely powerful, Cash's reflection has little things that can really show the decay of the family. For example (in context to missing Darl's presence at home)"I would think what a shame Darl couldn't be to enjoy it too. But it's better so for him. This world is not his world; this life his life." He also says shortly "Its Cash and Jewel and Vardaman and Dewey dell," showing the decay of the family over time and the grief masked by a tough facade. Despite the novel's unconventional narrative style, the hero's journey can still be identified and traced through the events of the story. Even then Cash doesn't completely fit into the journey.

Furthermore, other characters in the novel can also be seen as undergoing their own hero's journeys. For example, the character of Darl can be seen as a hero who struggles with his own mental health and the challenges posed by his family. As the main narrator, he has an almost clairvoyance to analyze and interpret situations in ways other family members could never think of. The character of Anse can also be seen as undergoing a hero's journey, as he tries to fulfill his promise to his wife to bury her in her hometown, despite the challenges and obstacles he faces on the way. He isn't very well-liked yet we can still draw a somewhat streamlined journey.

Overall, while the novel's unconventional narrative style may make it more challenging to identify the hero's journey, it is still possible to trace this narrative pattern through the events and character arcs of the story. Most characters have some degree of a heros journey, whether for simplistic or materialistic gains but they still count.