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As I Lay Dying is a fable not only about Addie\'s quest for salvation but about the testing of three sons by the ordeals of water and fire. Their crossing of the flooded river with the mother\'s corpse is the first test.... Darl came out of the water with empty hands, Cash with the horse (the substitute for the mother), and Jewel with the prize-the coffin.
The rescue of the coffin may be interpreted in two ways: it signifies the living mother that Jewel saves, and it signifies the love that Jewel retains. Cash and Jewel sacrificed what they loved: Cash his tools, Jewel his horse. Cash\'s sacrifice was returned, but Jewel\'s was accepted. Darl had nothing to sacrifice.
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