Theme Of Death In William Faulkner's A Rose For Emily

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Emily’s thoughts were a mystery to everyone in her town. Her reactions and actions towards the concept of death were unusual for many of the townspeople and the readers. A psychoanalytical critic would view this story about Emily’s psyche, thoughts, emotions and her experiences that led her to be the person she became. The first concept that resulted in Emily being an extremely independent woman was probably due to how strict her father was. He rejected all her suitors and never found anyone suitable enough for his daughter. The next, which was probably the biggest shock for Emily, was her father’s death, where she even kept his dead body for three days because she couldn’t seem to let go. The townspeople then pitied her and all the rumors she probably heard about her and the circumstances that led her to her downfall. The last concept that confirmed her mental illness and strange behaviors was the fact that she killed Homer Barron and slept with his corpse, probably every night. As previously mentioned on here and in “A Rose for Emily,” Colonel Sartoris rejected all …show more content…

Through psychoanalysis, the readers can see Emily as a victim to the expectations that had to be followed by everyone. Her actions led her to do what she did, which was ultimately not her fault. She went through death and isolation which led her to harvest the body of her loved ones. The rumors and gossip about her led her to isolate herself from the town, which made her an introvert. Truly the circumstances that fell in her way and the unsupportive neighbors that she had is the most logical explanation for her downfall, which shows how Emily was never at fault for her

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