Analysis Of William Faulkner 's ' Rose For Emily '

An important idiosyncrasy of Emily's that will help the reader to understand the bizarre finale of the story, is her apparent inability to cope with the death of someone she cared for. When deputies were sent to recover back taxes from Emily, she directed them to Colonel Sartoris, an ex-mayor that had told her she would never have to pay taxes, and a man that had been dead for ten years. Years before this incident, however, after her father had died, she continued to act has if he had not, and only allowed his body to be removed when threatened with legal action. Considering the fate of her lover's corpse, one suspects she would have kept her father's corpse also, had the town not known of his death.

“Alive, Miss Emily had been a tradition, a duty, and a care; a sort of hereditary obligation upon the town” (Faulkner 1). Emily, a member of the town’s elite class, relied upon her father when growing up and after his death, she refused to pay her taxes, stating that her father contributed much to society. But it was evident that she didn’t pay them because of a lack of maturity - financially and socially. When she was younger she pushes herself onto Homer Barron, a Northerner with no interest in marriage. Throughout the story, Emily is conflicted over societal change, and clings to her privileged manner even after finding herself in poverty. Yet, she becomes involved with a man from a lower social class, and a Northerner as well - hinting that he has different beliefs and values. The townspeople, however, believe the relationship it too modern when there is a possibility they are having physical relations despite not being serious about marriage. The community’s inability to commit to progress, contribute to the confused Emily’s decision. In A Rose for Emily, Faulkner uses the symbolism of Emily’s house and her hair to demonstrate her emotional instability and physical deterioration, illustrating the outcome of his story.

In “A Rose for Emily”, William Faulkner uses symbolism, imagery, simile and tone. Faulkner uses these elements to lead his characters to an epiphany of letting go of out-dated traditions and customs. The resistance to change and loneliness are prominent themes within “A Rose for Emily”. Faulkner uses “A Rose for Emily” to caution his readers that things are not always what they appear to be.

When a person has only been taught dysfunctional love, it is all too often that this is the only kind of love they will ever experience. In “A Rose for Emily”, William Faulkner explores an unorthodox relationship between an aristocratic southern lady named Miss Emily Grierson, and a blue-collar northern fellow named Homer Barron. The narrator, who likely represents the townspeople, describes Miss Emily’s unusual father in detail. Because of this illuminating description, the reader is able to begin to understand the strange dynamic Mr. Grierson and his daughter share. The story reveals how an over-controlling parent can negatively

William Faulkner has done a wonderful work in his essay “A Rose for Emily.” Faulkner uses symbols, settings, character development, and other literary devices to express the life of Emily and the behavior of the people of Jefferson town towards her. By reading the essay, the audience cannot really figure out who the narrator is. It seems like the narrator can be the town’s collective voice. The fact that the narrator uses collective pronoun we supports the theory that the narrator is describing the life of “Miss Emily” on behalf of the townspeople. Faulkner has used the flashback device in his essay to make it more interesting. The story begins with the portrayal of Emily’s funeral and it moves to her past and at the end the readers realize that the funeral is a flashback as well. The story starts with the death of Miss Emily when he was seventy-four years old and it takes us back when she is a young and attractive girl.

While a “Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner and “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor share the common themes of unexpected death and the old south, the murders found in each story are vastly different. Both stories tell of strong female protagonists who don’t cope well with change and both foreshadow death right from the beginning, but the murderers themselves come from completely different worlds.

In “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner, set in Jackson Mississippi in the year of 1931, there are many occurrences of foreshadowing. Foreshadowing is defined as a warning or indication of a future event. Faulkner uses multiple foreshadowing events in this Nobel Prize Winning story to build up to the shocking last sentence. Some of these occurrences include Miss Emily’s smelly house, when she purchases arsenic from the druggist, the purchase of toiletries and clothing for her sweetheart, and her upstairs being locked for many years. This short story is meant to be a horror, although throughout the story most would not be able to tell. Faulkner uses these foreshadowing occurrences to push the reader towards the horrific ending.

In the short story “A Rose for Emily,” author William Faulkner shows a woman, Miss Emily Grierson, who is seen as an upholder for tradition by the community. Emily lives on her own with a butler in her old, dusty mansion and has her story told by the viewpoint of unnamed narrators in a total of five sections, each depicting her life from someone one in the community's perspective. The story demonstrates Emily's life through the eyes of bystanders. We are introduced to the main character through her funeral being hosted in her home in which has not been seen in over ten years, excluding the single servant. Miss Emily had a special relationship within the community since 1894 when they remitted her taxes.

Most of the time, an object can represent multiple things. In the United States the Bald eagle represents freedom. It symbolizes freedom, because of its long life, great strength and majestic looks. Our soldiers fight for our freedom today. Symbolism explains an object more clearly and it goes beyond the meaning. Colors can also be a symbol. The United States flag has three colors and they all represent something different. White represents purity and innocence. Red stands for hardiness and valor. Blue signifies vigilance, perseverance and justice. If the flag is flown half-staff it represents respect, mourning, or distress.

In Williams Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” the story begins by the town going to Emily Grierson’s funeral in amongst her home. When Mr. Grierson died the family left a large sum for the town to use, in result the town suspended taxing the family. When new mayors of the town came into action they tried to make the family pay taxes, however when Emily reasserted the officials that she did not have to pay taxes. The people to officialized the family's agreement to the town as to not paying taxes had all passed away ten years before.

In the short story, “A Rose for Emily,” by William Faulkner there are several changes between the point of view of the narrator. The identity and reliability of the narrator is unascertainable and creates more questions than it answers. The narrator is present for all of the scenes that take place in the story, but does not play a role in the events, and speaks for the town as a whole. The reader is introduced to Miss Emily Grierson by an onlooker, someone who is not Miss Emily, but a part of the town that rejects her. The narrator changes point of view as his opinion of Emily change. The character of the narrator is better understood by examining the tone of the lines spoken by this “we” person, who changes his/her mind about Miss Emily at certain points in the narration.

“A Rose for Emily”, written by William Faulkner, is a story about a lonely upper-class woman who is struggling with life and the traditions in the Old South. Besides the effective use of literary techniques, such as symbolism and a first plural-person narrative style, Faulkner also succeeds in creating a suspenseful and mysterious story by the use of foreshadowing. Foreshadowing is a device used to give hints about what is going to happen in a story without giving the ending away, which also allows the reader to become completely involved with the story and predict the outcome of the overall work. Foreshadowing gave a powerful description about death and the tragic struggle of Miss Emily and in general, the use of this technique often relates to the events in the story rather than to describe a character. The overpowering stench inside Miss Emily’s home, the second floor of the residence being completely closed away and the discovery of the iron grey hair when the bedroom door finally opened up, are all strong foreshadowing tactics that were used to achieve such a surprising and strong but also believable ending to such a twisted story. Faulkner’s use of foreshadowing is used ingeniously to achieve a shocking and powerful ending.

William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily”, set in the Antebellum South, is a Southern Gothic short story littered with a contingent of iconic, significant and monumental supporting characters. From the gregarious Homer Barron to the taciturn Tobe, these characters are characterized by their symbolism and their pivotal influence on the underlying themes in “A Rose for Emily”. One such character, who is particularly monumental due to its inanimateness, is the Grierson Household itself. Because of the denigration of its surroundings, its exterior and its interior, the fall of the Grierson Household represents the death of the prosperity of the Antebellum South.

As the story continues, Faulkner beings to describe Miss Emily as a woman who has stayed true to her customs and strong ties to her family. Her family is much respected in her town, it is shown through an expected greeting. Miss Emily is also free from paying any taxes because Colonel Sartoris revoked her taxes after the death of her father. On page 1 Paragraph 8, she is asked by the city authorities to pay her taxes she owes and

“Alive, Miss Emily had been a tradition, a duty and a care; a sort of hereditary obligation upon the town…” (Faulkner 391). “A Rose for Emily,” written by William Faulkner, is about a woman named Miss Emily Grierson living in the small southern town of Jefferson, Mississippi. Set in the late 1800s, the story takes the reader inside the private and mysterious life of Miss Emily-a woman of tradition. Much like Miss Emily, William Faulkner was a private man. However, as Faulkner’s fame grew larger, he began to receive unwelcoming scrutiny from the public (Padgett 1). Similarly, the townspeople closely watch Miss Emily throughout the short story trying to unveil the secrets she is hiding. In “A Rose for Emily,” William Faulkner uses theme, symbolism,