A Rose For Emily Literary Analysis

In the short story, “A Rose For Emily”, by William Faulkner, the author writes about a time when wealth and status dominated the social scene. He gives readers a glimpse into the life of the people who comes from that type of breed. Faulkner illustrates the drama that associate with that kind of lifestyle. People with those social ranks believed they are better than most people, and by association, their children. Emily Grierson was born with that social rank because her father had money and nobility. She had a responsibility to her heritage to behave a certain way in society. Because of her encumbrance, she lived a miserable life. Besides her father, Emily had no one else to share the joy and happiness in life. At one point, Emily found companionship with a common laborer, but because of her background, she was not allowed that bit of contentment. Most of her life, Emily isolated herself from
When Emily emerged from her isolation, she was seen in the company of Homer Baron. Because Homer was a foreman, a day laborer, the townspeople found it unacceptable for Emily to be associated with him. The people from town would talk amongst themselves about the scandal while the older residents would comment “… that even grief could not cause a real lady to forget noblesse oblige” (Faulkner 954). The townsfolk did not mind that Emily dated because she deserved to be happy, but only if the man was in the same social position as Emily. Dating a man with low qualifications “…was a disgrace to the town and a bad example to the young people” (Faulkner 955). For the town to save their dignity, the townspeople caused a rift in the relationship between Homer and Emily. When Homer vanished, Emily secluded herself from the world once again. During her withdrawal, not one person from town came to visit Emily. The townspeople abandoned Emily to her