A Rose For Emily Modernism Essay

Emily's father suppressed all of her inner desires. He kept her down to the point that she was not allowed to grow and change with the things around her. When “garages and cotton gins had encroached and obliterated…only Miss Emily's house was left, lifting its stubborn and coquettish decay above the cotton wagons and the gasoline pumps” (Rose 217). Even when he died, she was still unable to get accustom to the changes around her. The traditions that her and her father continued to participate in even when others stopped, were also a way that her father kept her under his thumb. The people of the town helped in

Miss Emily tried to keep the body of her father with her in her house. This signifies that she did not

Everyone such as the people in the community, doctors, and so on were calling to tell her to let them lay her father to rest. "When her father died, it got about that the house was all that was left to her; and in a way, people were glad.' This shows that Miss Emily will be able to control

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.

There are many instances where Emily resists change, unable to let go of the Southern, antebellum lifestyle she grew up with. This creates a contrast between Emily and the rest of the town, which is progressing and modernizing as time goes by. Emily’s traditional nature puts an emphasis on her representation of the past. She actively resists modernization, choosing to reply to the mayor’s offer to call with a letter “on paper of an archaic shape, [written with] thin, flowing calligraphy in faded ink” (Faulkner 1). Emily’s actions represent the past and an inability to let go of it. She is stuck in the past, unwilling to accept the change that the future brings. Emily and her house are the last glimpses of the past in her town; as the town progresses, her house stood unmoving, “lifting its stubborn and coquettish decay above the cotton wagons” (Faulkner 1). The house continues to display the style of the past, despite the decay and progression of style. Emily and her house represent the past, when her house was new and in style. Emily’s resistance to change and longing for the past is appropriate, considering her age and upbringing. She is an older woman, who grew up during the Civil War era in the South. The reason the South fought in the Civil War was to protect their lifestyle at all costs. The South was unwilling to change, stubbornly clinging to the antebellum way of life. This philosophy shaped the

“A Rose for Emily”, written by William Faulkner, tells the story of a lonely woman who is stuck in her own timeframe. Miss Emily refuses to adapt to the new ways of the South and keeps her own traditions instead. The town she lived in spread much gossip about her, they pitted her lost soul. “A Rose for Emily” highlights the traditions of the Old South vs the New, which is told through the life of Miss Emily who refuses to change.

A suspenseful tale of tradition versus change is told with the help of literary elements in William Faulkner’s A Rose for Emily. Foreshadowing and symbolism develop Emily’s tragic fate in a way the reader is exposed to how deeply death and sociatal change have effected Miss Emily. Faulkner displays how effective these elements are for a short story to truly have an impact on the

Just as Miss Emily’s resistance to change is symbolized by the Grierson house so is Miss Emily’s loneliness. The Grierson house is so symbolic because it had once been a hub of activity with china painting lessons and guests. After the death of Emily’s father, the house was shut off from the rest of the world, very much like Miss Emily herself. The narrator tells us that “From that time on her front door remained closed, save for a period of six or seven years, when she was about forty, during which she gave lessons in china painting.” (Faulkner 34). We can tell, and perhaps understand to some degree, that Miss Emily has a very real fear of being left alone. This is first revealed by her denial of her father’s death for several days. “She told them that her father was not dead. She did that for three days” (Faulkner

During the conversation Miss Emily tells the men “See Colonel Sartoris. I have no taxes in Jefferson” (31). Colonel Sartoris has been dead for almost ten years. Emily’s behavior not only shows mental instability but also that she may be delusional and confused.

Even her everyday habits, she never accepted change throughout the story. “When the town got free postal delivery, Miss Emily alone refused to let them fasten the metal numbers above her door and attach a mailbox to it (157).” She was a stubborn, bitter old woman with disgusting morals. No one would have ever expected that was what Miss Emily was doing behind closed

Her entire life has been based on southern tradition implemented by the old generation, all of her decisions in life have been made in order to correctly conform to that tradition. If she conforms to modern standards, she loses all of the power and respect that was entitled to her. So, she does not conform, she gets rid of the new generation in order to keep herself sequested away from modern change. She protects herself from them so she can continue to live in denial that any change is necessary. For Miss Emily modern chage is unwanted and tradition is used to justify her denial. Miss Emily allows southern tradition to fester within herself, “She looked bloated, like a body long submerged in motionless water, and of that pallied hue” (220). She is barely living. Miss Emily no longer ventures outside, she is a walking corpse dwelling within a mousoleum structured to keep her rooted in southern tradition. She may have died of natural causes but it was not free of suffering. Miss Emily was slowly dying because she sequested heself away from any modern changes like paying her taxes. She cut herself off from the rest of the world in order to conform to tradition. Miss Emily’s slow march towards death is the same march the older generation faces. Just as Miss Emily refuses to give up her status and entitlement so do the older generation. Modern laws will be establish to blur the lines

This would signify to most that at least Emily was aware time was ticking away but she chose to ignore it. Unfortunately, there are many symbols that lead one to believe, Emily continued to live in the Post-Civil War era. Emily refused to accept change when asked that new postal service numbers be added to the house and that she adamantly tells the tax collectors to "see Colonel Sartoris"(452) to discuss any tax collection problems. Colonel Sartoris had been dead for ten

Emily's house is where Emily spent most of her life in isolation after the death of her father. Externally, it is considered to be "an eyesore among eyesores"(716) It is amongst cotton gins and that were put up after homes that previously resided on the street had since been moved out. Her house is basically the picture of decay amongst the newer buildings. This could possibly signify Emily's position in the town, or the town's position in the rest of the world. On one hand, the town is small and isolated, but on the other hand, Emily has isolated herself entirely from the rest of the town and seems to cling to her past even more so than the town itself.

However, over the years, the house became solitary amongst the other homes that were eventually modernized. Emily’s house became a representation of the stubborn physical presence of tradition because it was the only house left with an antique structure after the town became

In William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” the story is revolved around the character Emily Grierson. The story is told by the townspeople where Emily lives. These people are attending her funeral and pitching in memories and tales they remember from Emily’s life. It is through the collective voices and opinions of the crowd that the reader is able to interpret Emily’s struggles. With Emily Grierson’s choices the reader can tell that she is a dependant woman, with psychotic tendencies, and does not take the thought of change and rejection lightly.