he book. It also occurs after Addie has died, which again emphasizes her power as center of the family even after her death. It also makes her a real person instead of just someone about whom others speak, and in her own voice she both reflects much of what has been said about her and counters some of it by explaining her own attitude toward her life. The key to her character may come from what her father told her:
I could just remember how my gather used to say that the reason for living was to get ready to stay dead a long time (Faulkner 169).
At this point, she has finished that struggle and is now dead, adding irony to the words.
The way Addie describes herself and her life shows her to be a woman of strength, and though she has been given a difficult lot in life, she does what she can to change her position
...