A Rose For Emily By William Faulkner

Is there any case in which a murderer would be justified in killing? What if the murderer suffered from a severe form of mental illness? In William Faulkner chilling short story called A Rose for Emily, we see a character who murders her lover, but was it her fault? Emily had been mentally unstable for a long time and her family had a long history of suffering from mental illnesses as well, but at the end of the day there is no justification for murder. Some of the most notorious serial killers and murderers have suffered from one form or another of mental illness. People like Ed Gein, John Wayne Gacy, and Jeffrey Dahmer all suffered from some form of mental illness ("Dangerous Minds: Mental Illnesses of Infamous Criminals"). Although there is an understanding on how a person with mental illness is more susceptible to commit violent crimes, it is still wrong. In a study it was found that “no significant difference in the rates of violence among people with mental illness and other people living in the same neighborhood” (Publications). Emily killed Homer due to lack of morality caused by a combination of terrible parenting and a system that put her above the law. The relationship she had with her father was a distinct one, he pushed her into a little bottle and never let her out. She wasn’t allowed to be a person, but instead a trapped soul yearning for attention and love. The town in which she lived, held her on this pedestal that separated her from the rest of the

In “A Rose for Emily”, Charles Faulkner used a series of flashbacks and foreshadowing to tell Miss Emily’s story. Miss Emily is an interesting character, to say the least. In such a short story of her life, as told from the prospective of a townsperson, who had been nearly eighty as Miss Emily had been, in order to tell the story from their own perspective. Faulkner set up the story in Mississippi, in a world he knew of in his own lifetime. Inspired by a southern outlook that had been touched by the Civil War memory, the touch of what we would now look at as racism, gives the southern aroma of the period. It sets up Miss Emily’s southern belle status and social standing she had been born into, loner or not.

In “A Rose for Emily,” Faulkner employs a narrator to describe Emily Grierson, a recently deceased old woman. Apart from her manservant, she does not interact with others, save for a short period of time in

Among many twentieth-century writers who have attempted to write about murder and mystery, William Faulkner’s ability to create an uncomfortable mood is incomparable to any other. "When Miss Emily Grierson died, our whole town went to her funeral." In the introduction of A Rose for Emily, the pages are immediately infested with the theme of death, which brings the reader to question why this story has such a depressing tone upon separating the front cover from its pages. Making the solemn mood such an integral part of this piece not only provokes thought within the reader, but also gives a sense of security. It is clearly spelt out that the author is trying to make the audience feel a certain way. This specificity so early on in the piece makes his writing more believable and settling into the discomforting tone. A Rose for Emily is a poetic collage of psyche solutes meant to provoke life-altering observations and internal search.

William Faulkner wrote “A Rose for Emily” to showcase the changes in society. Faulkner’s story is about Emily Grierson, a southern woman, who is watched upon by the towns’ people of Jefferson from her earlier days until her death. Emily is a stubborn woman because she refuses to listen to the warnings about Homer, a northern man, she claims she does not have to pay her taxes, and leaves her father’s dead body in the house for three days. Emily also becomes secluded over the years only having two people in her life Tobe, her servant and Homer, her lover. The town’s people began to become suspicious when an awful smell was coming from Emily’s house. When Emily died, the people of the town went into her house, and they found the decayed body of Homer. William Faulkner comments that, “You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.” This is a direct reflection on how Emily lives her life because she does not want let go of her past, just like the south not wanting to let go of their tradtion. A decline of the south is the theme of the story and it is shown by the use of characters, conflicts, and symbols.

In William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” it is clear how Emily’s gender affects how the individuals in the town perceive her. Emily’s gender particularly affects how men understand her. Throughout the whole piece Emily is seen as a helpless individual who is lonely and has suffered losses throughout her life. When the reader reaches the end of the story the actions that Emily has taken is unexpected because of the way she is perceived by the narrator. In the beginning of the story, when the whole town was at her funeral and the men were discussing her life, none of the townspeople ever say anything negative about Emily. The men went to the funeral because they saw Emily as a fallen monument to the town. The narrator discusses how the town felt that Emily had become a tradition for them to take care of her. The narrator even points out how she did not have to pay taxes. This clearly shows how women are perceived in this town. Women are seen as unable to take care of themselves and as innocent humans. The way the narrator talks about Emily gives the reader the idea that Emily could never hurt anyone, because of this idea the reader is shocked at the end of the story. The feminist view of Emily allows the reader to be shocked by the ending of the story and it also allows the reader to see the way masculinity is understood in this piece.

Following reading the short story “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner, I was in some form of shock. It’s not everyday I can read a story out of an English book and actually like it. Thinking about this assignment while reading the story made is easier to dig deeper into the text rather than skim reading. I was able to pick up on more on what was being said the themes, motifs and symbols of the story. To me the part of the story that stood out the most, was the form of symbolism which was the gray hair found on the pillow next to Homer’s rotting corpse. Upon first reading and re-reading I didn’t understand, I didn’t put two and two together, I only saw Emily as being a person suffering from necrophilia. It wasn’t but a few hours later after reading that the symbolism reached me. The gray hair in itself does represent some very disturbing images and acts, but more importantly it symbolizes a form of love lost, and the often insane things people will do in the pursuit of happiness. You think about it, Emily in my eyes did have some major problems but as a whole all she

Stubborn and a bit unstable, Emily Grierson is the main character of William Faulkner’s “A Rose For Emily “. Emily is a prime example of a flat character because she seldom changes throughout the whole story. Emily acts as if nothing has changed over the years. In the town of Jefferson, It’s as if time went to a stood still. She shows this flat affect throughout the story in many instances. For example, like her refusing to pay her taxes, not keeping up with the maintenance of her father’s home after his passing. So much so that the home was referred to as “an eyesore among eyesores, still standing among the cotton wagons and gasoline pumps (Faulkner, p. 121).

     Miss Emily was rarely seen by the public after the death of her father. She confined herself to her house to bask in the sentimental memories of her father. Mr. Grierson had bought his family a house that was located in what, at that time, was one of the most prestigious neighborhoods of Jefferson. The street they lived was recognized by the community as prominent and seemingly royal and the houses were grand and picturesque. The “big, squarish frame...had once been white, decorated with cupolas and spires and scrolled balconies in the heavily lightsome style of the seventies.” However,

Miss Emily was an important character in the town of Jefferson. For some people she represented the old days when her family had a reputation and was highly respected. On the other hand, “Alive, Miss Emily had been a tradition, a duty, and a care; a sort of hereditary obligation upon the town…” (Faulkner), for other she was a burden to the city. After political changes her exemption from paying taxes become an issue. Her status didn’t mean anything anymore and she was supposed to be treated like everybody else. However, the fact that she was the last member of the great family made her someone special and after few attempts of sending her tax notices, even a new generation of towns officials decided to let

Compare and Contrast: “A Rose for Emily” and “A Good Man is Hard to Find”

In the short story “A Rose for Emily”, William Faulkner escorts the reader through the peculiar life of the main character Miss Emily Grierson. The gloomy tone of the story is set by the author beginning his tale with the funeral of Miss Emily. During course of the story, we are taken through different times in Miss Emily’s life and how she was lost in time, with the town around her moving forward. Through the use of southern gothic writing style, narrator point of view, and foreshadowing, Faulkner aids the reader in creating a visualization of Miss Emily and the town in which she lives while also giving an insight into her sanity.

Colonel Sartoris was the town mayor, he “remitted” (line 27) Emily’s taxes after her father died. Colonel Sartoris made up that “Emily’s father had loaned money to the town” (line 31), this rumor convinced the town that not making Miss Emily pay her taxes was their way of repaying her family. But a few years later, Colonel Sartoris died, and ten years after that men came to Emily’s house asking her to pay her taxes. Emily told them to check the “‘city records and satisfy [themselves]’” (line 78) for proof that she didn 't have to pay taxes to the town of Jefferson. Though the men told her that there was nothing in the books to prove her claim, so Emily told the men to ask Colonel Sartoris just before making them leave. Poor Emily didn 't know that there wasn’t documentation of the information of her taxes or that the man that hadn 't made her pay them was long dead. The deaths of these three men make readers pity young, middle aged, and old Emily, for they were the only people in her life who cared for her.

Due to her lack of involvement in the city for many years, she did not realize that the Colonel had been dead for almost 10 years now. Brooks Jr. and Warren argue that Emily is a “pathological case”, in that she has no idea what has been going on in the city where she lives for the past 10 years. In the early days, Emily Grierson’s family had high standings in the city. Her father was a wealthy man of the city for many years, who loaned money to the town. While he was in high standings of the city, Miss. Emily did not have to pay her taxes to the town. Some years later, Miss. Emily’s father passed away. “…she denies to the townspeople for three days that he is dead” (689). After the passing of her dad and

Short Fictions are a short narrative story with fewer description and characters which has at least one overall theme. These short fictions have been around since the 17th century meant to have meaning towards a plot or actions of fictional characters. Every story has a beginning, middle, and end to it, but due to short fictions only having fewer than 1,500 words it can be hard to truly understand the overall message it tries to send to the readers. I myself feel that confused after reading a short fiction, and miss the point of the story because I am not an active reader. Though after having discussions in class, and making close observation of the details included in the stories my understanding of meaning has changed a lot from the first time I have read them. Short Fictions like “Butterflies” by Patricia Grace, and “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner can be misinterpreted at first, but by analyzing each story the overall message can be revealed.