A Rose For Emily House Essay

Miss Emily’s House: The Downfall of The South In “A Rose for Emily,” William Faulkner uses symbolism to paint a vivid picture of the fallen South. This literary piece takes place in the southern town of Jefferson, during the Civil War era and depicts how the Southern way of life fell apart after the war. One of the symbols that he uses to illustrate the deterioration of the South is Miss Emily’s house. Through vivid descriptions of dilapidation of the once beautiful house and the things that Miss Emily cherished, the reader can visualize what the fallen South would have looked like. Faulkner portrays his views and perceptions of the fallen South metaphorically through the decayed image of Emily Grierson's house in “A Rose for Emily.” It was something of beauty, something people would walk past and be mesmerized by. It was a
They saw that she tried to preserve all the happiness of her past in a single, grim room. Just as the South deteriorated after the Civil War, so did Emily’s furnishings. “Then we noticed that in the second pillow was the indentation of a head. One of us lifted something from it, and leaning forward, that faint and invisible dust dry and acrid in the nostrils, we saw a long strand of iron-gray hair.” After the Civil War ended, most of the South moved on with their lives, regaining their humanity. There were a select few who could not let go of the traditional southern ways, just as Emily could not let go of the love Homer Barron once showed her. They grasped onto the pleasant memories of their past, not wanting things to change just as Emily created a false reality in that room on the second floor with the deceased Mr. Barron so she could hold onto him