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The Coffin
Jewel's relationship with his horse symbolizes his willful decision to separate himself from the rest of the Bundren family. Of course, Jewel is not biologically a Bundren child; however, he deliberately emphasizes his desire to detach from the family through cultivating such a strong relationship with the horse. In order to buy the horse initially, Jewel had to work every night, lying to his family with the exception of Addie, who favored Jewel and forced her other children to take over his chores. Darl even remarks sardonically that Jewel's mother is a horse. On the journey to Jefferson itself, Jewel rides ahead on his horse, symbolizing his desire for independence from the Bundren clan. When Anse ultimately trades Jewel's horse in for a new team of mules, it is as though he is trying to strip Jewel of his independence and make him feel a sense of duty to the family.
Jewel's Horse Quotes in As I Lay Dying
The As I Lay Dying quotes below all refer to the symbol of Jewel's Horse. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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21. Darl
Quotes
“It’s not your horse that’s dead, Jewel…Jewel’s mother is a horse.”
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26. Anse
Quotes
“I told him not to bring that horse out of respect for his dead ma, because it wouldn’t look right, him prancing along on a durn circus animal and her wanting us all to be in the wagon….”
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34. Darl
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“Jewel shouts at the horse…He is just above the top of the ford and the horse has a purchase of some sort for it surges forward, shining wetly half out of water…Cash is half turned, the reins running taut from his hand and disappearing into the water, the other hand reached back upon Addie, holding her jammed over against the high side of the wagon.”
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Jewel's Horse Symbol Timeline in As I Lay Dying
The timeline below shows where the symbol Jewel's Horse appears in As I Lay Dying. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
3. Darl
...Anse that Jewel is down in the barn, where he is attempting to mount his horse, which is behaving aggressively and resisting Jewel's command. Jewel finally mounts the horse and rides...
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21. Darl
...make an unexpectedly delayed return home. He sarcastically reminds Jewel that it is not his horse that is dead. Jewel curses him. Darl thinks to himself that he can no longer...
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24. Vardaman
...again that his mother is a fish, though Darl claims that Jewel's mother is a horse. Vardaman confusedly reasons that if Jewel is his brother, and Jewel's mother is a horse,...
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25. Darl
...family gathers in the wagon and Anse laments Jewel's inconsiderate behavior—specifically his obsession with his horse and the related face that he is not coming with them in the wagon to...
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26. Anse
...coffin laying at his feet. The wagon passes Tull's lane just as Jewel and his horse catch up with the family's wagon. Darl continues to laugh.
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27. Darl
...Cash tell Jewel all of these unfortunate details. Jewel swiftly passes the wagon on his horse, which kicks up a burst of mud onto Addie's coffin. Cash uses his tools to...
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32. Darl
...private. One morning in November, five months later, Jewel returns home one day on a horse. When Anse asks where he got the horse, Jewel replies that he bought it from...
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34. Darl
...crossed, Darl and Cash proceed with the wagon to the ford. Jewel remains on his horse, following Darl and Cash at the wagon's rear wheel. The brothers spot the rest of...
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...up crashing into the wagon, but Cash holds onto the coffin. Jewel shouts at his horse, as the other family members rush along the riverbank. Because of the strong surge of...
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42. Darl
...about his health, but Cash merely mutters about his tools. Jewel rides ahead on his horse to Armstid's home and comes back to the Bundrens with Armstid's team of mules that...
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...while they eat in Armstid's home, and describes Jewel's rituals of taking care of the horse.
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43. Armstid
Anse leaves Armstid's house the next morning with Jewel's horse, riding off to inquire Snopes about opportunities for buying a team of mules nearby. Back...
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...buy himself a graphophone, explains Darl), some money from his teeth fund, and, finally, Jewel's horse.
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...appears more dumbfounded then infuriated at this news, and decides to ride away on his horse, making it so that the mule deal would not ultimately pan out. Though the next...
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46. Darl
...Jewel, who still had been missing, returns to the family silently. No longer with a horse, Jewel boards the wagon. Anse points out the upcoming hill and tells his children to...
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47. Vardaman
...the situation in simple, declarative sentences: "Jewel came back"¦He was walking. Jewel hasn't got a horse anymore. Jewel is my brother. Cash is my brother. Cash has a broken leg." Vardaman...
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48. Darl
...called Gillepsie. Upon arrival, Darl asks Jewel "Whose son are you? Your mother was a horse, but who was your father Jewel?" Jewel becomes angry and repeats again and again that...
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