An Analysis of Anse in "As I Lay Dying"

It is no secret that Anse, the patriarch of the Bundren family, is hated by most everyone the reader encounters in As I Lay Dying. Even as a reader I think it is normal to want to hate Anse. He contributes almost nothing to the family unit and seems to be only acting out of self-interest in everything he is a part of. Not only that, but he is incredibly lazy, incessantly rubbing his knees throughout the novel and claiming "...that if he ever sweats, he will die." Another one of Anse's annoying traits is that he is not a religious man, but whenever something arises that he doesn't want to deal with, he uses God to justify why he shouldn't do it. You can almost guarantee that Anse will say "Oh God would have wanted it that way" or "It is God's will, not ours", but only if it betters his own interests. His blaming of God is most ridiculous, to the point of being laughable, when Addie is on her death bed. Anse refuses to call the doctor, as he doesn't wish to spend the money, and claims that "if God wants her to die, then so be it." Are you kidding me?! Your wife is on her death bed and you refuse to spend a few dollars to possibly save her because "it's God's will"? That is absolutely ludicrous. Anse's reasoning for wanting to go to Jefferson are also worth questioning: although he claims that he wishes to bury Addie there out of respect for her wish to be buried with her family, it is no surprise that as soon as he gets there he finds a new wife and also gets new fake teeth. It makes the reader wonder whether Anse really wanted to respect Addie's posthumous wishes or if he solely wanted to go to Jefferson to obtain a new wife and new teeth. Anse's character proves to be the least ethical and especially the least likable in As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner. Anse's selfishness and hypocrisy make his character out to be a horrible father, husband, and person in general. No wonder your family hates you, Anse.