As I Lay Dying by William Faulkne, Essay Example

At the end of the novel, Darl is committed to an insane asylum for setting a barn on fire. What other factors may be involved in his family’s decision to commit him? What justification, if any, is there for his act of arson?

Darl can be noted as the most cerebral actor of the novel. Darl is characterized as an intellectual that his character leads hinders him from gaining either the self-sacrificing loyalty or the flashy heroism that his brother Jewel has.  This drives Darl in not believing wholeheartedly in his family mission. This essay illustrates the reasons to why, Darl’s family decided to commit him, and secondly the justification of his arson acts, together with the reason to why he is committed to insane asylum.

According to the novel, it can be noted that Darl had a philosophical nature, which alienated him from his community around him. People, according to Cora find Darl very unsettling and strange. His ability to understand private things is what brings him the main problem with his family. He first narrates the death of his mother, though he was not around when she died. Secondly, he explains the Dewey’s fling with the late, and he further perceives that Jewel’s real father is not Anse.

Therefore, the above makes him be alienated from his community. The fear of Darl’s behavior of knowing things makes all the characters to alienate him, since they thought their secret life would come in open if Darl continues with the behavior of unveiling secrets. It is this fear that dictates his family to commit him to an insane asylum, more than his action of arson. At the same time, his action of arson could be because of feeling rejected by his family, reason being that he knew more than they wanted him to know.

Again, the sense of betrayal made him view all the members of the family as uncaring and due to his unwanted decision, he goes ahead to do an arson. He shows his cruelty by teasing and harassing his brothers. The harassment and teasing can also be because of not agreeing with the family, and this adds him the anger to do an act of arson.

Notably, Darl does many things that do not go inline with the family. For instance, he makes problems with his sister and her lover. He also does not connect with any member of his family. This habit makes him to be considered as unwanted in the family, which further propels the idea of committing him to insane asylum.