The death of Addie Bundren as narrated by Darl presents many questions for some critics. For example, why does Faulkner choose to have Darl render or narrate the death scene when he is not even present? This technique emphasizes Faulkner's method of narration and his characterization of Darl. The intuitive and perceptive abilities of Darl allow him to visualize a scene even though he might be miles away from it. That is, Darl knows exactly how his father, his brother, Dewey Dell, and other members of the family will react to the death scene even though he is not present at the scene. We must assume, therefore, that Darl in going for the load of lumber must have known that his mother was going to die or else that he has some exceptional perceptive ability that allows him to sense her death even though he is not present. This ability will also contribute to the suggestion that Darl is, if not mad, at least different from the other Bundrens.
The reader, if not aware of it before, must now realize that Cash is building his mother's coffin under her window so that she can watch and see that he is building her a good one. The comic aspect of this situation is almost lost in the pathos of Addie's death. But then the entire section is a combination of that which is tragic and that which is comic. For example, the selfishness of Anse Bundren is caught in one simple phrase, which he utters immediately upon learning that his wife is dead. There is no mourning, there is no thought other than for his own selfishness concerned with obtaining his new teeth so that he can eat the food that God intended him to eat.
