Theme Of Fate In As I Lay Dying

The human race fears one thing collectively, inevitability. Each individual has an inevitable fate or looming inescapable fact hanging over them and it’s not just death. It can be anything such as family; physical and mental illness; the consequences of your actions; sworn duty; or yes, death. The scariest fate can be simply living with yourself and who you are. As I Lay Dying addresses all of these inevitabilities gruesomely. The book starts immediately with death. Addie, a mother and wife, is dead throughout the entire story. I believe Addie was dead to begin with. Her very existence represents the ever constant promise of death. The family around her can never truly be rid of her or reminders of her. They can also never be rid of each

He is imprisoned literally but also figuratively. He cannot escape mental illness or the consequences of his actions. When he attempts to flee he is brought down harder than if he had accepted it. He could have acknowledged his twisted mind from the start. He would still be imprisoned, but now he has pulled everyone else down with him. His own actions in addition to his mental illness and grief now weigh heavy on him.

In addition, Dewey cannot escape her pregnancy. She has to face the fate of physical illness, consequences, and family. While pregnancy is not an illness, it can easily be seen as one. It is a huge burden to carry a child within you. This weight is heavy enough without the implication of the child being a product of rape. I believe the character, Lafe, is a metaphor for Darl and what he had done to Dewey. She is not facing her own actions, but the actions of Darl. Dewey tries to escape Darl and physically she does, but mentally she will never be free; he is family. She distances herself from the rest of her family. Her treatment of Vardamn represents unavoidable family ties. She manages to treat him decently; she treats him almost like a mother. Dewey’s family will always be around her. She will never escape them. Dewey desperately wants to escape her kismet of misery and nights alone with just her child. In her denial she only delays her healing

The Glass Menagerie describes a dysfunctional family full of denial and pain. Tom is the main subject here. He is trapped within a whirlwind of abuse and manipulation. Tom flees the house as quickly as he can, causing arguments and grief. When he leaves he realizes he can never escape his family. Tom in this instance is not fleeing a fate but rather a fact of life. This idea of an unavoidable family fits because inevitable does not only apply to the future; it applies to the present and past. The definition of inevitable includes the world unavoidable. The looming trauma from Tom’s family is unavoidable. He will never forget his sister, his mother, or his father. He will always feel guilty for leaving his sister. This example of inevitability is important; it shows the inescapable can be anywhere, even right beside