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Themes In A Rose For Emily

Decent Essays

William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” first published in 1931 is a tragic story of a southern woman, Miss Emily Grierson, who is the subject of the town’s obsession. The narrator, a member of the town, tells the story of what occurs in a decaying old southern house that is always being seen by the townspeople. They witness Miss Emily’s life, her father’s life, her turn to insanity and the death of both her and her lover’s life. There are many themes within “A Rose for Emily,” the color of Emily’s hair, isolation among others and death. The themes are communicated through the plot if the story such as the description of Emily’s hair, he insanity and tradition.
Miss Emily Grierson was born in a polished family Isolated at an early age by her family. Emily is shown as superior by the townspeople, who thinks of her as a “tradition, a duty,” even though they find her arrogant and mocking. Emily is shown to be have a mental breakdown following the death of her father. She begins to accept his death, then retreats into her house with a mysterious sickness. One day, Homer Barron and his crew of laborers come to town to build sidewalks. Emily starts to have an interest in Homer in spite of the disapproval of the townspeople, who argue that he is too low class for Emily to like him. Emily buys some arsenic poison, but she refuses to explain why. Years later, when Emily dies, the townspeople find a man’s skeleton in her bed. The story strongly suggest that the skeleton is Homer Barron.

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