Essay on Rose for Emily

Submitted By rayybanns
Words: 1252
Pages: 6
Open Document
A Rose for Emily: The Life of a Murderer
In the story “A Rose for Emily”, by William Faulkner, it is clear that a change is indispensable in a person’s life and Emily is the perfect example of this. As a bizarre story unfolds in author William Faulkner’s short story “A Rose for Emily”, a woman who has stayed in seclusion most of her life somehow managed to be all that the townspeople talked about. Faulkner uses the narrator to tell Miss Emily Grierson’s story because she can’t tell it herself. Unfortunately Emily Grierson is deceased and the story is jumps back and forth between her death and the way she lived her life. With the narrator, the author is able to prove that Miss Emily herself controls the townspeople and gets them to do anything she wanted them to, and that her life is mainly heard as gossip. She stayed in the pre-civil war past. Emily Grierson was a sheltered southern woman who, while alive, struggled immensely with her sanity and the evolving world around her. Emily’s father, a very prestigious man, was the culprit behind Emily’s senseless behavior. He kept her sheltered from the rest of the people in town. “The townspeople remembered all the young men her father had driven away…” (Faulkner 93). If Emily was permitted to date and mingle with people her age one wonders would she had turned out differently or was Emily mentally disturbed?
Emily Grierson was the last remaining member of the upper class Grierson family, and she refused to leave the past behind her even as the next generation begins to take over. Miss Emily became so caught up in the way things were in the old South that she refused to pay her taxes forcing the Board of Alderman to pay a visit to her house. Upon entering her home the men realized that her house was still heavily furnished with old leather furniture, which was another indication that Emily was still clinging to the past. Emily shows more control when she goes to the druggist to buy poison. This is soon after Homer leaves town. It is required by law that if you buy poison you have to state what it is being used for. “Miss Emily just stared at him, her head tilted back to look him eye for eye.” (Faulkner 92). Miss Emily did not have to tell what she would the poison for, it was suspected by the townspeople “‘she will kill herself.’” (Faulkner 93).
From the beginning to the end, the narrator remained a mystery “When Miss Emily Grierson died, our whole town went to her funeral.” (Faulkner 94). The narrator does not leave the reader a name, but somehow they know every detail about Miss Emily’s life. Jumping back and forth they give some detail to who Emily Grierson is. The first sign of control that Emily showed was that unlike the other townspeople, she doesn’t have to pay taxes. “‘See Colonel Sartoris. I have no taxes in Jefferson.’” (Faulkner 92). It was said that Miss Emily’s father loaned so much money to the town, this was a way of repaying. But Miss Emily has been out of touch with the world for long she has no idea that Colonel Sartoris has been dead for nearly ten years and that the story was made up because Emily father only left her with only the house and she didn’t have the money to pay taxes. Emily was stuck in the past with her thoughts and feelings, was left alone her whole life. Her love life soon became the talk of the town when she began being spotted with Homer Barron. “By entering a love affair with Homer Barron, Emily briefly rebelled against southern values…” (Dilworth). The more Emily and Homer are seen together, the townspeople begin to believe that they will get married. In fact they “were really glad… to think that she and Barron were or would soon be married.” (Dilworth). Soon it becomes known that Homer “was not a marrying man.” (Argiro 2). This now gives the towns people something to talk about, Emily was having sexual relations with a man that was not going to marry her. It was also rumored that Barron was homosexual, “he liked men, and it was known
Show More

Related Documents: Essay on Rose for Emily

Symbolism In A Rose For Emily

Sturgeon ENC 1102 26 January 2015 Symbolism of the Strand of Hair in “A Rose for Emily” For years men have called women crazy, but in William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” the word crazy takes on a whole new meaning. Throughout a story filled with death, love, and gossip the main character, Emily who is an old Southern woman, goes to an extreme length of poisoning her almost lover to keep him forever in her bed. Years later after Miss Emily dies, the townspeople hold a funeral at her house which then leads…

Words 634 - Pages 3

Essay On A Rose For Emily

Jesse Merrill Amie Avery English IV 1/18/15 A Rose for Emily (as a side note I am doing this paper as I read the story) The beginning of the story starts out similar to “Story of the Hour”. It describes the main character, in this case being Miss Emily Grierson. At the beginning it described how everyone went to her funeral, which shows her importance to the town. It then goes on to tell you that the guys went there to appreciate her beauty and respect her affection in life. Whilst the girls only…

Words 545 - Pages 3

A Rose for Emily Essay

1302 “A Rose for Emily” Discuss William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” has several themes displayed throughout this story. The most predominant theme is about death and loss experienced by the main character Emily Grierson. The story is about the life of Emily in the old southern town of Jefferson. This story is told in an unusual way for it starts with Emily’s death. It then goes on to her life as a young lady and how it was restricted by her father’s ways. Once her father passed, Emily starts…

Words 2698 - Pages 11

Essay on A Rose for Emily

"No doubt exists that all women are crazy; its only a question of degree" (W.C. Fields) In the short story "A Rose For Emily" by William Faulkner show that being confined leads to insanity. Emily Grierson is kept away from society her whole life by her controlling and conservative father. only after his death did she gain her independence but only causing her to be rooted to the past, become isolated from society and finally causing her insanity. Being isolated from society, at a young age can…

Words 1026 - Pages 5

"A Rose for Emily" Essay

Stuck in the past in “A Rose for Emily” by Faulkner Change causes a person to do things out of the norm. It is common for people to fear change. Most people although afraid will accept the changes and adapt to it. Others will control that change unwilling to adhere to the new and unfamiliar way of things. Many are stuck in the past, in the traditions that guide their lives. Emily Grierson is a product of the Old South, rich in traditions and set in her ways. The New south means change; traditions…

Words 1173 - Pages 5

Diction In A Rose For Emily

Most authors include a combination of literary terms in their stories to grasp the readers attention, causing them to dig further into the mystery of the story and come up with their own idea of a conclusion. In William Faulkers short story A Rose for Emily, constant use of diction, organization, and point of view allows the author to hide a deeper meaning to the story itself in which the reader must discover. Diction is the authors ability to use certain words in order to give the reader a visual…

Words 744 - Pages 3

Homer In A Rose For Emily

Seeing everything through a rose colored glasses is peachy until you take them off; however, it’s a harsh reality once you learn the truth about someone you dearly cared about. Homer, a character from the short story “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner, taught Emily; also a character from this short story a valuable lesson about love. By showing/being scandalous, independent, and nontraditional. Homer; a young handsome bachelor, caught Emily eye. Despite his class, she fell head over heels for…

Words 381 - Pages 2

Analysis: A Rose For Emily

2015 Journal One “And who am I? That’s a secret I’ll never tell...” In “A Rose for Emily” we get a lot of outrageous things form the story staring with the protagonists death and ending with another “passing” found. But the oddest thing in this story must be the “Gossip Girl” narrator, he/she speaks for the whole town, and untrustworthy. First off the storyteller in “A Rose for Emily” he/she likes to stalk every move that Emily makes. Whether she is staying home for too long or going out to buy rat…

Words 416 - Pages 2

Essay on A Rose for Emily

and Modern English II Essay # 1 November 2, 2012 A Rose for Emily: A Struggle between Loneliness and Insanity Readers of “A Rose for Emily” could argue the point - is insanity a learned behavior, brought on by years of abuse at the hands of a father or is insanity hereditary passed down from generation to generation? Within the first two paragraphs of this story William Faulkner allows the reader to picture the home of Miss Emily Grierson. It is described as being a beautiful home from…

Words 1020 - Pages 5

A Rose for Emily Essay

A Rose for Emily Symbolism EMILY VS HER FATHER • Her father is portrayed with his back to her: Disregard to her emotional welfare. • The horsewhip: a symbol of control over her life THE DEAD • The dead are present in her life (foreshadowing) • She holds onto her father's body • After Homer's missing she became a living dead "But the images of death emerged most frequently: her pallid complexion: her drowned, bloated body; her lost eyes; and the cold, dry voice of the tomb. Not only…

Words 614 - Pages 3