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essays on Faulkner's a Rose for Emily
a rose for emily, feminism
literature victorian quiz
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Women in the Victorian Era, and analysis of “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner and “The Storm” by Kate Chopin. There is something about a blank page that allows your emotions and true feelings to flow on it without judgement. It is your own creation, one that remains untarnished by the views of others. These recorded feelings allow for an unhindered access into the perspectives of the author. As such, we are granted a unique access into the mindset of two authors and their personal approach on the conflicts of two unique women during the Victorian Era. “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner and “The Storm” by Kate Chopin both look at a women’s sexuality, domestic life and their unique behavior that goes against the norms of that period of time. “A Rose for Emily” is a short story about a women who is part of the cities elite class. After experiencing death she removes herself from society and encloses herself in her mansion as the town around her changes. The story is told in the perspective of the townspeople and how they gossip about the misgivings this women experiences. “The Storm” on the other hand is a story about a housewife and her sexual liaison that ensues during a storm with a past love. All while her husband and son are stuck to endure the oncoming storm in town while said liaison occurs. These captivating stories share how the deeper layers of our desires remain unchanged throughout humanities history. Both stories delve into women sexuality on a level that I find especially unexpected seeing that they were both written during the late 19th century, a time of pervasive Victorian ideals. What perplexed me the most, especially “The Storm”, was how uninhibited this women was in pursuing sexual s... ... middle of paper ... ...ern-town, and the governing class. These women both go against the dictated Victorian “norms”. We find a clash between Calixta who chooses a normal form of escaping these burdening ideals and Emily who is driven mad by the immense burdens society has placed on her. They reflect, how even with the most barring of societal demands, our cardinal needs find ways to be met. “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner and “The Storm” by Kate Chopin bring about themes that were clearly ahead of their time. They capture the oppressiveness of the era, and disclose through their writing humanistic pursuits that even to this day we can relate to. That’s not saying much as it is clear, whatever the ideals of the society in said era, we remain human, and are motivated by the most elemental facets of our brain to seek out our fundamental pursuits. No society can bar these.
In the book Literature by Edgar V Roberts, Faulkner begins the story “A Rose for Emily” with an extremely long sentence which shows the communities reaction to death and immediately displays a scene through gender differences:
Kate Chopin's short story 'The Storm'; describes an encounter of infidelity between two lovers during a brief thunderstorm. The story alludes to the controversial topic of women's sexuality and passion, which during Chopin's time no one spoke about much less wrote about. So controversial was 'The Storm,'; that it was not published until after her death in eighteen ninety-nine. The story is broken up into five sections, each filled with small clues and hints that reflect her message. In short, Kate Chopin's 'The Storm'; is about a confirmation of feminine sexuality and passion and a rejection of the suppression of it by society.
In William Faulkner’s story, “A Rose for Emily”, Faulkner uses symbolism as a literary element to keep the reader interested in his writing. There are many characters and materials that Faulkner placed throughout the story with hidden meaning. When he describes dust being in a scene, the reader may scan over it, not giving the element much thought. The dust, however, does hold a significant message. Dust was present in Ms. Emily’s home all throughout the story. Ms. Emily spent most of her time in her home. She used her house to recluse herself from society and is also where she died. With this being said, dust is a reoccurring object throughout the story that symbolizes aging, the state of being a recluse, and death.
“Like a river flows so surely to the sea darling, so it goes some things are meant to be.” In literature there have been a copious amount of works that can be attributed to the theme of love and marriage. These works convey the thoughts and actions in which we as people handle every day, and are meant to depict how both love and marriage can effect one’s life. This theme is evident in both “The Storm” by Kate Chopin and “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Gilman; both stories have the underlying theme of love and marriage, but are interpreted in different ways. Both in “The Storm” and in “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the women are the main focus of the story. In “The Storm” you have Calixta, a seemingly happy married woman who cheats on her husband with an “old-time infatuation” during a storm, and then proceeds to go about the rest of her day as if nothing has happened when her husband and son return. Then you have “The Yellow Wallpaper” where the narrator—who remains nameless—is basically kept prisoner in her own house by her husband and eventually is driven to the point of insanity.
Emily Dickinson and Charlotte Perkins Gilman both lived in a time where women were considered to be “second class citizens”. During this time it was expected of women to be obedient and submissive to their husbands. A woman’s thoughts and opinions were never valued as much as a man’s was. Despite these unfavorable conditions both Emily Dickinson and Charlotte Perkins Gilman fought back and expressed themselves. They served as huge inspirations for other women enduring the same struggles. Although both works depict how each author overcame gender inequality, Dickinson was a rebel who didn’t hesitate to express herself while Gilman
In the short stories "The Story of an Hour," by Chopin and "A Rose for
“A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner is a southern gothic story first published in 1930. The story of Emily Grierson’s life parallels the struggle the South faced when breaking away from its antebellum past into modernity. The story is narrated collectively by the citizens of Jefferson—a seemingly average small southern town. The narrator tells the story of Emily Grierson—the town reclusive eccentric who died before accepting the changes brought forth from the post-civil war south. Emily Grierson is seen as a hereditary obligation by the town’s citizens. She is the object of discussion to the point of fanaticism. She is a relic of the old south who lives in a once grand manor that is now the eyesore of town. Like the house, Emily has gone from a young pretty maiden of the south with numerous suitors, to being a spinster—last seen ten years before. Emily has lost her domineering father, her last suitor and her old way of life. Her failure to change has caused isolation which has evolved into a macabre grasp at normalcy. This has left Emily’s life to succumb to decay—both literally and figuratively. The theme of the story is the fear of change can cause the human spirit to decay.
Chopin’s use of symbolism throughout the text establishes a method of conveying the opposition of structural gender roles in Victorian society to readers in a magnificent way.
Women have traditionally been known as the less dominant sex. They have been stereotyped as being housewives, and bearers and nurturers of the children. Many interesting characters in literature are conceived from the tension women have faced with men. This tension is derived from men, society, and within a woman herself. Even though these stories were written during the 19th century when modern society treated women as second class citizens, in “The Storm” and “The Story of an Hour,” Kate Chopin illustrates how feminine power manifests when the female characters are able to discover their freedom.
Storytelling has been a common pastime for centuries. Over the years it has evolved into different styles containing different themes. Kate Chopin, a well-known author of the 20th century, wrote stories about the secrets in women’s lives that no one dared to speak of. Her work was not always appreciated and even considered scandalous, but it opened up a world that others were too afraid to touch. In Chopin’s story “The Storm,” a woman has an affair that causes an unlikely effect. The story’s two themes are portrayed greatly through an abundance of imagery and symbolism, along with the two main characters themselves.
Kate Chopin is one of the most astounding writers of early American short fiction. This author is considered to be among the “most important women in nineteenth-century American fiction” ("Katherine Chopin"). She was also “a significant figure in American feminist literature”(Kort, par 1). One of her famous short stories is called “The Storm”. This deals with the subject of infidelity and sexual fulfillment outside of marriage without moral judgments can be found in this piece. This story was written in 1898 but wasn’t published until 1969 (Larsson, par 17). Chopin uses symbolism, conflict, and setting to bring forth a story that is based on feminist.
In the stories “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner and “Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin both women suffer through expectations brought on by society and the ideas of marriage. Emily loses her sanity trying to obtain love and live up to the expectations of society. Emily kills the man she loved so that he would never leave, and so that she could maintain her reputation. She was put on a pedestal, and that pedestal would end up being her destruction. Louise is a woman afflicted by heart problems, which could relate her unhappiness. After losing her husband she starts to feel free; however when her husband walks through the door she dies. Louise was a prisoner of societies making, she was never given a voice. She could never explain her unhappiness because women were expected to love and obey their husband’s without complaints. Marriage to these women meant different things, although the idea of marriage damaged both women. Louise and Emily were women damaged by the pressures of who they are expected to be.
William Faulkner and Charlotte Gilman are two well known writers for intriguing novels of the 1800’s. Their two eccentric pieces, "A Rose for Emily" and "The Yellow Wallpaper" are equally alluring. These authors and their works have been well recognized, but also critized. The criticism focuses on the society that is portrayed in these novels. The modern readers of today’s society are resentful to this dramatic society. These two novels are full of tradition, rebellion and the oppression over women’s rights. Both of these novels share the misery of the culture, but there is some distinction between the two. "A Rose for Emily" is a social commentary while "The Yellow Wallpaper" is an informative novel about the writer herself. The authors outlook focus on the gloomy structure in society during that time frame and therefore, create down hearted, reckless characters that offer stimulation for women of all generations.
Many short story writers have written about the gender and role of woman in society. Some of these stories express what Barbara Walter calls, “The Cult of True Womanhood” meaning the separation of both man and woman in social, political and economic spheres. In order to be considered a “true woman” woman were to abide by the set of standards that were given to her. Women were expected to live by the four main principal virtues - piety, purity, submissiveness, and domestication. In Kate Chopin’s short story, “The Storm,” Calixta the main female character breaks away from “The Cult of True Womanhood” when she has a sexual encounter with her past lover Alcée. The storm goes through many twists and turns that tie with their adulterous actions. Although she breaks away from the four main principal virtues, she in the end is considered to be pure innocent of heart because the action in which occurred happened instantly, and as white as she was, she was taken away from her innocence.
In the short story “A Rose for Emily” written by William Faulkner, Emily, the protagonist, is shown as someone who’s life is falling apart and brought down by society. Emily in this story could be described as a victim to society and her father. Emily Grierson’s confinement, loss of her father and Homer, and constant criticism caused her, her insanity.