William Faulkner Symbolism Analysis

In the short story A Rose for Emily written by William Faulkner, readers are immersed in the narrative of a supposed town member who describes the impact that the recent death of an old woman has had upon their small community. In the narrative, readers are taken on a journey through the life of Miss Emily, an old, lonely woman who is seemingly frozen in her own timeframe. As the story unfolds, readers learn about the various tragedies Emily encountered in her lifetime such as the sudden death of her controlling father as well as her alienation from other family members that leaves her utterly alone following his death. Audiences also learn about events that happened throughout Emily’s life that both molded her as a person and aided in shaping her reputation around the town. From her controversial relationship with a construction worker named Homer Barron to her suspicious purchase of arsenic at the local drug store, there is no question that Emily lived under the constant scrutiny of her fellow townspeople. After reading the initial sentences, it can be concurred that this story doesn’t simply describe the life of an old, questionably insane woman, but also the story of the age-old battle between old and new. Through symbolism and an artful arrangement of the events described, Faulkner is able to meticulously weave a tale of the clash between newer and older generations’ views and standards.

A reason that is presented as to why she has so little family other than her father is because he once had a falling out with some other relatives in Alabama, so the two sides refuse to come together. Even after Mr. Grierson dies, the Alabama kin “had not even been represented at the funeral.” (Act III) This once again showcases the loneliness of Miss Emily because she did not even have her own family to comfort her in a dark time. By being all alone, her unresolved feelings could have contributed to the abandonment issues. From the suggested abandonment issues, the reader can start to see that possibility of Emily taking matters in her own hand if given the chance. Besides just foreshadowing, her family history can also be argued to be the foundation of Miss Emily’s instability with her loneliness she needs to resolve being a result of their actions.

In “A Rose for Emily”, William Faulkner uses imagery and symbolism to both illustrate and strengthen the most prevalent theme; Emily’s resistance to change. William Faulkner seems to reveal this theme through multiple descriptions of Miss Grierson’s actions, appearance, and her home. Throughout the short story it is obvious that Emily has a hard time letting go of her past, she seems to be holding onto every bit of her past. Readers see this shown in several ways, some more obvious than others.

William Faulkner uses the short story “A Rose for Emily” to depict the social attitudes of the Old South after the Civil War. The main character Miss Emily Grierson epitomizes the failure of the South to adjust to the changes inflicted on it. Prior to the Civil War, Miss Emily belonged to a prominent and wealthy family of Jefferson who was part of the Aristocratic class. The story portrays how she refused to accept her new social status and was in complete denial. An illustration of her inability to face reality was when she kept Mr. Tobe working as her man-servant, even though she had lost her fortunes and could no longer afford such luxury. Another example of Miss Emily being unable to adjust to change was during the death of her father. She acted as if it had not happened and told her neighbors “that her

In her mind she is wanting to find someone who she could spend the rest of her life with but Homer is just wanting a fling and not a commitment. This is something that the citizens of Jefferson will worry about, as they feel that they must look after Emily since her father passing. The townspeople are like her parents and feel like it is in their best interest to look after her. This could make the reader show sympathy for Emily, rather than disliking her.

One of the largest cultural revolutions in history occurred after the American Civil War, completely changing the lives of those who lived in the southern United States. Despite the improvements to society these revolutions bring, some people will reject these changes by clinging to their outdated ideologies. In his short story “A Rose for Emily,” William Faulkner focuses on the life and death of Miss Emily Grierson, an aging woman who loathes all forms of change. Throughout the story, Faulkner presents Miss Grierson as the last person to embrace the antebellum culture through her rejection of posantbellum changes, references to antebellum society, and description of the town’s thoughts and feelings toward Miss Grierson. Each time Miss Grierson faces changes, she refuses to accept them, reinforcing the idea that she rejects modern ideas and retraction from reality. When the city asks Miss Grierson to pay taxes, she quickly dismisses the city’s patient pleas by telling the council at her house, “See Colonel Sartoris. I have no taxes in Jefferson” (section I, paragraph 12). She commands the council to see a deceased mayor, reinforcing Miss Grierson’s detachment from the present. Later, Miss Grierson solely refuses to allow the post office to “fasten the metal numbers above her door and attach a mailbox” when the town receives free mail service. Since she is accustomed to the antebellum society and cannot adjust to postbellum improvements, she rejects the new mail system. After

The manner that Faulkner applies point of view in "A Rose for Emily" provides the readers with the idea of the dying values, traditions, and customs of the “Old South”.

Faulkner has characterized all the characters in the best possible way. Emily Grierson, Homer Barron, Judge Stevens – the mayor of Jefferson, Mr. Grierson – Emily’s father, Tobe – Emily’s servant, and Colonel Sartoris – a former mayor of Jefferson are the major charters in the story. The narrator describes Emily as a monument, but with a lot of negativity. The story shows us how she was a smart young girl and then how she end up being an overprotective and secretive old woman. She refused to accept the change when her father died and that’s why she kept telling all the people in town that her father is still alive. Homer Barron is much like Emily. Like Emily, Homer is an outsider and becomes the topic of gossip. The narrator describes Homer as a big man with dark complexion with a good sense of humor. Tobe’s character in the story plays an important role. He is a loyal and dutiful servant. He cared for Emily till she died, but he walked out of the back door and never returned after Emily’s death. Mr. Grierson was a well-maintained person. When he was alive, Emily’s house was always beautifully maintained. He earned a lot of respect in the society but when he died the respect towards his family died with him.

It is believed that she would want to keep Homer Barron for herself, like a prize or trophy, and even though her father believed that no one would ever be good enough for her, Homer could never be hers because of his interests in young men. So, Emily would, devise a plan to murder Homer, she feared that should would be left alone again and allowing the townspeople to believe the two are married. The acts committed by Emily are comparable to those of Jeffery Dahmer in that he kept his victims as trophies. According to Encyclopedia

This short story by William Faulkner is set in Post-Civil War Mississippi, as racial and class tensions rise the old south must change to progress or risk decaying. The reader can determine the historical time and background in part one when Faulkner describes Miss Emily Grierson’s final resting place, “And now Miss Emily had gone to join the representatives of those august names where they lay in the cedar-bemused cemetery among the ranked and anonymous graves of Union and Confederate soldiers who fell at the battle of Jefferson” (451). This is the first symbol of change and decay, the end of an era, a change in history and laws sadly marked by death and decay. He continues his use of symbols throughout to portray the relationship between change and decay. Decay is due to a resistance to change. In his short story “A Rose for Emily”, William Faulkner uses symbols such as Emily, her house, and Homer to portray change and decay.

Faulkner uses a metaphor in which he states, “When Miss Emily died, our whole town went to her funeral: the men through a sort of respectful affection for a fallen monument” (Faulkner). Faulkner describes her as a fallen monument due to the fact she was the last memory the town had prior to her death. Isolation is a major theme amongst this story because Faulkner presents this theme through Emily through her stubbornness. Because Emily is interpreted as a very stubborn individual, she doesn’t allow the townspeople to enter her home thus creating her isolated and excluded from the townspeople. Emily states, “‘I have no taxes in Jefferson. Colonel Sartoris explained it to me. Perhaps one of you gain access to the city records and satisfy yourselves.’ ‘But we have. We are the city authorities, Miss Emily. Didn’t you get a notice from the sheriff, signed by him?’ ‘I have received a paper, yes,’ Miss Emily said. ‘Perhaps he considers himself the sheriff…. I have no taxes in Jefferson’” (Faulkner). Emily repeatedly denied having any taxes in Jefferson, exhibiting persistence in the midst of this argument. Another major influence of society’s isolation in the story is in regards to Homer Barron. Homer was a man that Emily had previously known, but he was derived from a different class. Both Homer and Emily are outcasts due to the fact that their lifestyles aren’t accepted as a part of their society. For example, “At first, we were glad that Miss Emily would have an interest, because the ladies all said, ‘Of course a Grierson would not think seriously of a Northerner, a day laborer’” (Faulkner). Formerly, the community felt empathy for Emily’s interest in Homer,

The Civil War was fought over the issue of slavery. It was a war that divided the United States in half: the Union and the Confederacy. After the father’s death, Miss Grierson met a Yankee from the North, Homer Barron. Mr. Homer was working outside of her house doing some construction on the pavement. There was rumor of Miss Grierson being interested in the “Northerner, a day laborer”. She went to the pharmacy and asked for the deadliest poison they had. Miss Emily ended up murdering the Yankee, Homer Barron. After all Miss Grierson was recognized as a fallen monument. She had gained affection and respect from her community.

Faulkner uses Emily’s character to represent the Old South in health and death. Her stubborn attitude and her decorum both reflect the characteristics of the Old South. When the men go to her home and confront her about her unpaid taxes and she asks them to leave, she represents that women in the Old South were not argued with and not questioned as not to insult them. The way that the people of the town treat her reflects this even further. The people of the town treat Emily as a monument just as they had seen the Old South. “It was another link between the gross, teeming world and the high and mighty Griersons.” They see her as something to observe and only interfere when she does something they do not like, such as dating a Northerner. Even in death The Old South follows her. “And now Miss Emily had gone to join the representatives of those August names where they lay in the cedar-bemused cemetery among the ranked and anonymous graves of Union and Confederate soldiers who fell at the battle of Jefferson.”

“In this world, nothing is certain but death and taxes.” This quote by Benjamin Franklin is a mirror to Emily’s story as it begins with her death and then the reader is abruptly brought into the tax remission she received after the death of her father. This interesting yet confusing vignette is about a girl named Emily Grierson and her inconsiderate relation with the town, a man she loved, Homer Baron, and her Father. For Readers of Faulkner, it is truly apparent that his stories do not follow the pattern of the conventional beginning to the end of the story. This method of disorderly sequence of events along with the descriptive style tends to lead this story as if we are

To put it bluntly, Emily is an aristocratic Southern Belle and Homer is a sidewalk builder from the North. “The townsfolk view Emily simultaneously as an idee fixe and a bete noir whose cruising with Homer Barron they monitor” (Melczarek 240). The older folks would say that Emily, in the wake of her father’s death, was forgetting “Noblesse Oblige,” or nobility obligations (Faulkner 797). Of course Emily had had suitors more suited for her in the past, but she decided it was Homer she wanted. The narrator comments, “She carried her head high enough – even when we believed that she was fallen” (797). Then, when Homer prepares to go back North, the townspeople are suddenly in her corner and pity her when Homer disappears.