Comparison of Women's Struggles in Use by Alice Walker and A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner

The story “Use” written by Alice Walker is set in the southern state of Georgia in the late 1960’s or early 1970’s. Alice walker is known for writing stories about women who are portrayed as victims, and stories that have unhappy endings. Use stood out from Walkers other stories because her protagonist had such confidence and stood up for her family’s legacy against her own daughter, who views herself as one who above her family and her past. In the short story “A Rose for Emily” written by William Faulkner, the story depicts a character, Emily, who went through a major struggle in her life, and had a hard time finding her place in the world, as in the rest of his stories. The story is set sometime after the civil war, in the late 1800’s or early 1900’s, in a fictional town of Jefferson, Mississippi. Even though those stories were written so long ago they are still relevant as well as relatable. Why are the two stories similar and different from each other? But more importantly how are the two stories relatable?

In an overall story about life, “Use” followed a mother and her two daughters, Dee and Maggie, through a few flashbacks and memories, but ultimately the story took place while Dee brought a boy home to meet her family and get a few things from her mother. Mother, the narrator, is an uneducated woman from the South; she is a kind gentle yet stern woman who felt unappreciated by Dee even after all she had done for her. Dee no longer lived at home because her mother raised money for her to go off to school in Augusta, Georgia. Dee saw herself above the rest of her family as if she was too good for them. Her family looked for approval in her; however she didn’t feel the same of her family. She ignores and even rejects her h...

... middle of paper ...

... Now she too would know the old thrill and the old despair of a penny more or less.” “So the next day we all said, "She will kill herself"; and we said it would be the best thing.” Thought both stories were told from the first person point of view, both stories had a very different feeling to them.

In conclusion both Alice Walker and William Faulkner had very different ways of portraying their characters and thoughts, but in the end what can be understood from each story is the same. Life can be different for every person; life could be easier for some people, as in Dee’s case, and harder for others as in Emily’s. Some will pity you, just like Emily was, and some will envy you, just like Dee was. In the end if change is refused, like Emily did, then like could be become a deep dark place, or make the change, and find the endless possibilities in life, as Dee did.