In his short story, A Rose for Emily, well-known American writer and Nobel Prize laureate, William Faulkner, narrates the consequences of people not changing with the times. He lived in the south when slavery was acceptable and includes this in many of his stories. Faulkner’s purpose is to emphasize to his audience that people must accept change and evolve or risk isolation and ultimately dying alone. Faulkner’s views on change are brought out effectively in “A Rose for Emily” through his use of setting, tone, and diction. This paper will explore these strategies used by Faulkner to convey to his audience the importance of being able to adapt to a dynamically changing world. It will also answer the question of whether or not Miss Emily was stuck in the past and unable to move forward.
Faulkner begins his story by telling his audience the whole town went to Emily Grierson’s funeral. The men went out of respect for her and the women out of curiosity. He describes her house in great detail. “Only Miss Emily’s house was left, lifting its stubborn and coquettish decay above the cotton wagons… an eyesore among eyesores” (Faulkner, 177). He compares her house to that of a flirtatious woman. Her house is so decayed it’s more fascinating and memorable to the viewer than the town’s cotton wagons are. This suggest that Miss Emily was stuck in the past and did not make improvements toward the future. When the new Board of Alderman call upon Miss Emily concerning her delinquent taxes she reverts back to the past as depicted in the following quote;
Her voice was dry and cold. “I have no taxes in Jefferson. Colonel Sartoris explained it to me. Perhaps one of you can gain access to the city records and satisfy yourselves.”
“But we hav...
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...ld have accepted the changes that were taking place with the Post Civil War Era. Instead of becoming a recluse and living out the rest of her days alone.
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