Setting Analysis of the Story a Rose for Emily
An analysis of the setting of “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner’s
William Faulkner is one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century. Although he was born in New Albany, Mississippi in 1897 he moved to Oxford, Mississippi before his fifth birthday. Faulkner belonged to a once-wealthy family of former plantation owners (eNotes.com, Inc., 2012). He spent his boyhood hunting and fishing in and around Lafayette County (eNotes.com, Inc., 2012). William Faulkner based most of his stories and characters closely to his life and the ones that had the greatest influence in his life. The South’s historical legacy is what Faulkner often wrote his novels based on and that it what helped him gain recognition. Faulkner moved around to different states but his roots were in the south and that where most of his life was spent, so the setting mirrored that.
“A Rose for Emily” is a very captivating short story of a lady who refuses to adhere to the changing world around her and the order of society. Unwilling to pay taxes and committing murder are crimes that she committed and got away with. Emily helped give us a better understanding of female oppression and empowerment by her actions in this story. I feel that these crimes would not have taken place if the timing and the setting were different. During the time of the turn of the century the south arose from the Civil War and they were trying to break away from the stigma of slavery. Faulkner’s gestures to broader ideas, including the tensions between North and South, complexities of a changing world order, disappearing realms of gentility and aristocracy, and rigid social constraints placed on women (SparkNotes Editors).
In the introduction of the story the narrator talks about Emily funeral and how all of Jefferson was present because they still upheld her families honor and reputation but, the narrator is critical of the old men in their Confederate uniforms who gathered. The funeral was held in her home where
William Faulkner is one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century. Although he was born in New Albany, Mississippi in 1897 he moved to Oxford, Mississippi before his fifth birthday. Faulkner belonged to a once-wealthy family of former plantation owners (eNotes.com, Inc., 2012). He spent his boyhood hunting and fishing in and around Lafayette County (eNotes.com, Inc., 2012). William Faulkner based most of his stories and characters closely to his life and the ones that had the greatest influence in his life. The South’s historical legacy is what Faulkner often wrote his novels based on and that it what helped him gain recognition. Faulkner moved around to different states but his roots were in the south and that where most of his life was spent, so the setting mirrored that.
“A Rose for Emily” is a very captivating short story of a lady who refuses to adhere to the changing world around her and the order of society. Unwilling to pay taxes and committing murder are crimes that she committed and got away with. Emily helped give us a better understanding of female oppression and empowerment by her actions in this story. I feel that these crimes would not have taken place if the timing and the setting were different. During the time of the turn of the century the south arose from the Civil War and they were trying to break away from the stigma of slavery. Faulkner’s gestures to broader ideas, including the tensions between North and South, complexities of a changing world order, disappearing realms of gentility and aristocracy, and rigid social constraints placed on women (SparkNotes Editors).
In the introduction of the story the narrator talks about Emily funeral and how all of Jefferson was present because they still upheld her families honor and reputation but, the narrator is critical of the old men in their Confederate uniforms who gathered. The funeral was held in her home where