Is she so afraid of living alone that she would go to extreme measures, like sleeping next to a dead body? The short story “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner reveals the plot of a lonesome woman who lived a desperate and secluded life named Miss Emily Grierson. This narrative displays the events that occurred since her father’s death, her lover’s death, up until her own. Miss Emily was so inhibited from the real world and displayed signs of abnormal behavior, it was obvious she had mental problems. From her psychological issues, any sane person could establish that Miss Emily had a mental illness. She refused to bury her father, refused to explain her need for poison, and refused to let her lover leave. Miss Emily first expressed signs of mental illness after her father’s death; she was emotionally unstable and refused to accept that her father was dead. The story states: “The day after his death all the ladies prepared to call at the house and offer condolence and aid, as is our custom. Miss Emily met them at the door, dressed as usual and with no trace …show more content…
The story states: “The druggist looked down at her. She looked back at him, erect, her face like a strained flag. “Why, of course,” the druggist said. “If that’s what you want. But the law requires you to tell what you are going to use it for.” Miss Emily just stared at him, her head tilted back in order to look him eye for eye, until he looked away and went and got the arsenic.”(148) This quotation from the passage reveals that Miss Emily had intentions on using the arsenic for a reason the druggist would not approve of. After the people of the town recognized her purchase of the poison, they instantly assumed that she had plans to kill herself. Though she did not use the arsenic to kill herself, it was used to murder someone very close to
Emily was drove crazy by others expectations, and her loneliness. ““A Rose for Emily,” a story of love and obsession, love, and death, is undoubtedly the most famous one among Faulkner’s more than one hundred short stories. It tells of a tragedy of a screwy southern lady Emily Grierson who is driven from stem to stern by the worldly tradition and desires to possess her lover by poisoning him and keeping his corpse in her isolated house.” (Yang, A Road to Destruction and Self Destruction: The Same Fate of Emily and Elly, Proquest) When she was young her father chased away any would be suitors. He was convinced no one was good enough for her. Emily ended up unmarried. She had come to depend on her father. When he finally died, ...
At the beginning of section 3 Emily has fallen ill. Even though this set a very sad tone, it is temporarily lifted by brief comedy, as they speaker of Homer Barron. Homer worked for a construction company, and introduces himself to the setting since the walkways are being replaced around the time of Emily’s father’s death. He is a very charismatic person, because the kids all follow him in groups to, “Hear him cuss the riggers.” He becomes a popular character around the town. He also begins to take Emily on dune buggy rides. However, although this may be nice for Emily, her fellow neighbors believe she shouldn’t be around types like him. As nice as it may be that something good is happening for Emily, the speaker immediately makes us ponder about why she is about to purchase arsenic. Typically when a purchase of arsenic, or any poison for that matter, they must give a valid reason as to why they are buying the poison. However when Emily goes to buy it and the store clerk says, “The law requires you to tell what you are going to use it for.” (William Faulkner, 6) She simply responds with, “For rats” (William Faulkner,
Miss Emily was brought into the spotlight the same moment as her father died. Being the last remaining person from the high ranking Grierson family in town, she became the new ambassador of the old days. The people welcomed her with open arms, without actually knowing anything more about her than her admirable name. Her father's death also meant that Miss Emily's unrevealed secret was brought into the grave. It is well known that insanity is a hereditary disposition, and Miss Emily's great-aunt, lady Wyatt, had "gone absolutely crazy"(80) before she passed away a couple of years earlier. Emily's father had since then dissociated from that branch of the family, as if to run away from a dishonorable influence. I believe that he was aware of her condition, and he therefore had kept her from social life and driven away the long road of suitors to prevent her from causing another scandal, which could spot his and his family's remaining reputation.
He was the only man in her life, and after his death, her behavior became even more unnatural. However, her father's death cannot be seen as the only cause of Miss Emily's insanity. Miss Emily's behavior was also influenced by her own expectations of herself, the townspeople's lack of authority over her, and her neighbor's infatuation with her. The narrator tells us the Griersons had always thought too highly of themselves and no doubt Emily shared this opinion with her belated family. After her father's death, she was the last of the Griersons.
The townspeople were unaware of this. They had thought that the Colonel had left Miss Emily and never showed his face in town again. That’s probably why they were so shocked when they found his body in the upstairs room. The signs all pointed to Miss Emily having killed her lover. If going crazy did run in her family then she must have just snapped when her lover tried to leave her. The town mayor had gotten numerous complaints about an awful smell coming from Miss Emily’s house. No one even thought twice about what the smell could’ve been, instead the narrator says, “ So the next night, after midnight, four men crossed Miss Emily’s lawn and slunk about the house like burglars, sniffing along the base of the brickwork and at the cellar openings while one of them performed a regular sowing motion with his hand out of a sack slung from his shoulder.” (Faulkner 32). The men covered up the smell, which was most likely the horrid smell of a rotting corpse, and once the smell went away, no one thought about it again. Another sign that pointed towards Miss Emily having killed her lover was a strange encounter she had with the druggist in the town. She said, “I want poison” (Faulkner 33) and then went on to say “I want the best you have. I don’t care what kind.” (Faulkner 33). She wasn’t even trying to hide what she was doing. She almost made it sort of obvious, yet no
Faulkner wrote that by law they were to state their intended use of the poison, Miss Emily never did. “‘If that's what you want. But the law requires you to tell what you are going to use it for.’ Miss Emily just stared at him, her head tilted back in order to look at him eye for eye, until he looked away and went and got the arsenic and wrapped it up.” (161).
William Faulkner's short story, "A Rose for Emily" is often held as a literary classic due to Faulkner?s ability to play with our minds and emotions almost to the point of frustration. However, there is much more than mind games that Faulkner plays that makes this story great. Emily Grierson, the main character, is a strong-willed stubborn old bitty, who is quite odd, this alone is a reason for greatness. To fully understand why Emily is the way that she is, one must look past the obvious and truly look at Emily. Emily Grierson has a mental condition that is just itching to be discovered.
Emily had a servant so that she did not have to leave the house, where she could remain in solitary. The front door was never opened to the house, and the servant came in through the side door. Even her servant would not talk to anyone or share information about Miss Emily. When visitors did come to Emily’s door, she became frantic and nervous as if she did not know what business was. The death of Emily’s father brought about no signs of grief, and she told the community that he was not dead. She would not accept the fact that she had been abandoned because of her overwhelming fear. Emily’s future husband deserted her shortly after her father’s death. These two tragic events propelled her fear of abandonment forward, as she hired her servant and did not leave the house again shortly after. She also worked from home so that she never had a reason to leave. Emily did not have any family in the area to console in because her father had run them off after a falling out previously. She also cut her hair short to remind her of a time when she was younger and had not been deserted. Even though people did not live for miles of Emily Grierson, citizens began
As a child, Emily was unable make friends or even play outside because her father held his family to a much higher standard than other townspeople “The Griersons held themselves a little too high for what they really were” (Faulkner 36). Emily’s father, selfishly held Emily back from living, loving, and freedom. She was unable to find a soul mate because her father believed that “None of the young men were quite good enough for Miss Emily and such” (Faulkner 36). Because of this, Emily stuck close to the only man she’s ever known like a newborn to its mother. Emily and her father had such a close bond that when he died, for days she refused to believe he was dead, and she also refused to let the townspeople dispose of the body. For the townspeople, Emily’s reaction to her father’s death was quite normal, but for readers it was our first glimpse at her necrophilia.
By using strong characterization and dramatic imagery, William Faulkner introduces us to Miss Emily Grierson in “A Rose for Emily”. The product of a well-established, but now fallen family, Emily plays common role found in literature- a societal outcast, who earns her banishment from society through her eclectic behavior and solitary background. Often living in denial and refusing to engage with others, Emily responds to her exile by spending the remainder of her life as a mysterious recluse that the rest of society is more content to ignore rather than break social customs to confront her. Emily’s role as an outcast mirrors a major theme of the story, that denial is a powerful tool in hiding a secret, however, the truth will eventually emerge. The mystery surrounding Emily’s character and the story’s memorable imagery creates a haunting tale that lingers with the reader.
William Faulkner’s A Rose for Emily tells a story of a young woman who is violated by her father’s strict mentality. After being the only man in her life Emily’s father dies and she finds it hard to let go. Like her father Emily possesses a stubborn outlook towards life, and she refused to change. While having this attitude about life Emily practically secluded herself from society for the remainder of her life. She was alone for the very first time and her reaction to this situation was solitude.
William Faulkner’s short story “A Rose for Emily” displays themes of alienation and isolation. Emily Grierson’s own father is found to be the root of many of her problems. Faulkner writes Emily’s character as one who is isolated from the people of her town. Her isolation from society and alienation from love is what ultimately drives her to madness.
In “A Rose for Emily”, by William Faulkner, Emily Geierson is a woman that faces many difficulties throughout her lifetime. Emily Geierson was once a cheerful and bright lady who turned mysterious and dark through a serious of tragic events. The lost of the two men, whom she loved, left Emily devastated and in denial. Faulkner used these difficulties to define Emily’s fascinating character that is revealed throughout the short story. William Faulkner uses characterization in “A Rose for Emily”, to illustrate Miss Emily as a stubborn, overly attached, and introverted woman.
Emily alone that they thought she was crazy, and this scared people. In the beginning they only felt sorry for Miss. Emily, but as the story progresses things become a little weirder. After her father’s death it took three days for her to finally allow them inside to get him. Even though this made them feel sorry for Miss. Emily this proves that she was experiencing some emotional problems. Jack Schering states that “Emily became an emotional orphan in search of the father who had been taken from her.” ( Jack Schering page 400) I am sure that with dealing with all that she had going on she came off as a crazy old lady, Especially to the younger generations. Little did we know though that at the end of the story we would find out the extant of mental
Emily’s father’s death was a major tragedy for Emily. It seems as if she was in denial of his death. Faulkner explains, “The day after his death all the ladies prepared to call at the house and offer condolence and aid, as is our custom. Miss Emily met them at the door, dressed as usual and with no trace of grief on her face. She told them that her father was not dead.” So Emily would not admit that her father had died. After she accepted his death, she had to endure life without a father. This must have been terribly hard, but she endured it. Many people also attempted to help Emily