“A Rose for Emily” is a unique story in which town people remember the life and death of an older woman named Emily. Emily lives alone in a large house with her black house servant named Tobe. Without him, Emily would not be able to live a normal existence. However, she really does not have a normal life with him since he adds to her oddity. Tobe is an important part of the story, yet he does not have a substantial role, other than the reality that he kept her alive, and kept her secrets from others. In the beginning of the story, the narrator mentions him as, “The Negro…old Negro” (120), when he allows the mayor and his men to enter the house in order to settle a tax debt. It is not until Emily is frustrated that she speaks his name, “Tobe…show these gentlemen out” (121), he then proceeds to show the men out the door; thus, showing his role of keeping Emily happy and content by removing those who are a nuisance. Later the narrator explains how, …show more content…
However, he remained quiet about her. He would not give information about her to anyone outside the home, and “he talked to no one, probably not even to her, for his voice had grown harsh and rusty, as if from disuse” (129). By remaining silent, Tobe allowed her secrets to be unknown. When Emily had died, “The Negro met the first of the ladies at the front door and let them in…and then he disappeared. He walked right through the house and out the back and was not seen again” (130). He continued his duties as servant by allowing the women into the house at the time of Emily’s death. He also continues his duties in her death by remaining silent. By not explaining to the women or anyone, he keeps Emily’s secrets as he walks out the
This passage displays a tone of the men’s respect and sense of protection toward Emily, which is very different from the other women’s reaction to her death. It also shows the reader that Emily was honorable in the eyes of the men of the town. We have seen this need to protect women throughout history, but in recent years there has been a great decline and it is sad.
In addition, as a lady descended from aristocracy, Emily was educated in how to behave as a noble, which became her huge barrier to people around her. Throughout the story, Emily always 'carried her head high enough', even when she went out with Homer Barron, bought rat poison, or talked to the Board of Alderman. A head carried high showed that Emily was absolutely aware of her status, which kept her from having a person to confide in. She never even talked to the Negro servant who lived under the same roof with her for years. That was the reason why people only saw him go in and out of the house silently from the beginning to the end of the story.
One can clearly imagine the timid Emily standing behind her towering father. "Miss Emily a slender figure in white in the background, her father a spraddled silhouette in the foreground, his back to her and clutching a horsewhip." Emily's father not only dominates the portrait but dominates Emily as well. Emily's father controls her every move. She cannot date anyone unless her father approves, yet he never approves of any of the few men that do show interest in her. "None of the young men were quite good enough for Miss Emily and such." Unable to find a good enough suitor, Emily has no choice but to stay and care for her governing father.
should come to her. Instead Emily lived by herself with only a black male servant.
He was a controlling figure to her. As the narrator was telling us the story, I noticed in a few lines things that her father used to do to keep her home. Looks like he would scare guys away interested in Emily. He did this stuff because he wanted her to stay home and take care of the house. From my point of view he would have more control over her actions and would not let her out of the house.
When her father passed away, it was a devastating loss for Miss Emily. The lines from the story 'She told them her father was not dead. She did that for three days,' (Charter 171) conveys the message that she tried to hold on to him, even after his death. Even though, this was a sad moment for Emily, but she was liberated from the control of her father. Instead of going on with her life, her life halted after death of her father. Miss Emily found love in a guy named Homer Barron, who came as a contractor for paving the sidewalks in town. Miss Emily was seen in buggy on Sunday afternoons with Homer Barron. The whole town thought they would get married. One could know this by the sentences in the story ?She will marry him,? ?She will persuade him yet,? (Charter 173).
It is evident in the first few scenes of the story that the butler is a loyal confidant of Emily. He is the only person that knows of what is happening in the house and he keeps Emily’s secrets as if they were his
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.
Faulkner starts his story by showing the amount of respect that is shown at Emily’s funeral. It is said that the entire town attended this event, but also that some only showed up to see what the inside of her house looked like because no one had been inside in over ten years. “The men through a sort of respectful affection for a fallen monument, the women mostly out of curiosity to see the inside of her house, which no one save an old manservant- a combined gardener and cook- had seen in at least ten years”(pg.542). He explains this to show the mysterious interest of Emily. By explaining the mystery in Emily, he carries a dark tone that mystifies the audience.
In "A Rose for Emily," William Faulkner's use of setting and characterization foreshadows and builds up to the climax of the story. His use of metaphors prepares the reader for the bittersweet ending. A theme of respectability and the loss of, is threaded throughout the story. Appropriately, the story begins with death, flashes back to the past and hints towards the demise of a woman and the traditions of the past she personifies. Faulkner has carefully crafted a multi-layered masterpiece, and he uses setting, characterization, and theme to move it along.