Literary Criticism In Rose For Emily, By William Faulkner

Gothic Literature is text makes a reader rethink something that is considered a normal in society. In a “Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner a reader can reconsider what a society is. In communities, especially small ones, people look out for each other. People are always in each other’s business knowing that “so-and-so did this, and so and so did that,” but in a “Rose for Emily” the community isn’t keeping tabs on Emily. They feel bad for her and they watch the house but they don’t actually know what is happening in her life, ever.

Emily was having problems with her social skills per say. The story reads, “After her father’s death she went out very little; after her sweetheart went away, people hardly saw her at all.” (Rose for

Emily had a weird smell around the yard, and the smell was so bad that the people went around and asked Judge Stevens about it. The man of law acts as if he isn’t suspicious and he writes it off, “It’s probably just a snake or a rat that nigger of hers killed in the yard.” (Rose for Emily, 2). He then continues with his story changing saying, “Dammit sir, will you accuse a lady to her face of smelling bad?” (Rose for Emily, 3). The judge keeps changing his story; he knows what is happening, he just isn’t doing anything about it. Emily goes to the local drug dealer asking for poison. Emily says that she wants Arsenic. The drug dealer responds, “If that’s what you want. But the law requires you to tell what you are going to use it for” (Rose for Emily, 4). The drug dealer then sent her a package with a bottle of Arsenic with a note attached reading “For rats” (Rose for Emily, 5). Judges and drug dealers can be corrupt, it happens sometimes, but they both know dang well that they aren’t doing what they are supposed to. When Emily died the people went into her house to check out what had happened. The people said, “Already we knew that there was one room in that region above stairs which no one had seen in forty years, and which would have to be forced” (Rose for Emily, 5). The people knew that there was something happening in the house long before they saw the dead body of Homer Barron. The town’s people knew what happened. They knew that Homer didn’t want to settle. Everyone knew that someone was dead in that house; they just didn’t do anything about