preview

A Rose For Emily Setting Analysis

Decent Essays

The Last Ones on the Block In William Faulkner’s short story, “A Rose for Emily,” the speaker gives specific details involving the setting. He shares with us the crucial information to understand the story’s true value. In the story, the setting helps the readers comprehend when and where to place exactly why some things in the story happen for a reason and to make it a vivid adventure. Symbolism also plays a part in making the story one to remember. In “A Rose for Emily,” the setting and symbols both act as vital roles by describing important items that symbolize a greater meaning and placing the time period in which it is set. In the beginning, the audience gets a glimpse of the house belonging to Miss Emily. The exterior of the house was beautiful, but aging. When it was first built in the post-civil war era, it was lovely. However, after revolution and change, Miss Emily’s home was the last standing house on the block. This is vital to the story because it paints a picture for the reader’s mind. The interior of the house was dusty and unclean after the change. This demonstrates how cooped up Miss Emily truly is. She never …show more content…

The first being the house itself. The house represents the stubbornness of Emily. When everything near her was changing, she did not, and neither did her house. They both remained constant through the revolutions. Another symbol is the smell that is trapped inside the walls of the house, then eventually escapes. It symbolizes the decaying of Miss Emily’s mind, and how her mental state is continually going downhill. The sidewalks that are being built around her house, resemble evolution. While everything around Miss Emily changes and becomes better and bigger by evolving, she chooses not to change. She refuses to pay the taxes the new tax collectors are demanding of her because she is set back in her ways and is too stubborn to admit

Get Access