A Rose for Emily (Frozen in Time: a Rose Will Never Grow)

Frozen In Time: A Rose Will Never Grow Published in 1930 by William Faulkner, "A Rose for Emily" is revealed to be a disturbing and yet somewhat intriguing tale of murder. The story is set approximately from 1884-1920 in the small, southern, antebellum town of Jefferson, Mississippi. Aristocracy is definitely seen to be the burden within this work, showing that privilege is a prison. Whereas some readers could consider the main character, Emily Grierson, as murderous; she could also be seen as a tragic heroine forced to uphold her family 's name to society 's standards by any means necessary--even death. There are many evidentiary facts throughout this work which lead its readers to believe that Emily is coerced into her acts of murder. The first signs of society 's impression on Emily were definitely seen through her father 's actions and his strong bond to his past, aristocracy. During this work, Emily 's mother was absent, possibly dying during Emily 's birth, therefore, Emily 's father is destined to control every aspect of her life. Miss Emily was raised to be very dependent on only the male figures found within her life, especially her father. This definitely set the type of interaction that she would have with the male figures throughout her life. Even though there were few, Miss Emily was dependent and unable to let go of the men that she encountered during her life. The first male figure in Miss Emily 's life, and the one that caused Emily 's dependency, is her father. Emily receives suitors, all of which her father denies her, ruling her life with an iron fist. Emily is violated by her father 's strict mentality. After the death of her father, she refuses to let go and holds his corpse hostage for three days, finally giving him a speedy burial. However, later in the work, "On a tarnished gilt easel before the fireplace stood a crayon portrait of Miss Emily 's father," and she sat watching it for long periods of time which could explain her

Cited: Birren, Faber. Color Psychology and Color Therapy. New York: University Books,1961. Dillon, George L. "Styles of Reading." Polk 47-62. Gioia, Dana and X.J. Kennedy. "A Rose for Emily." Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. 9th ed. Pearson Longman, 2005. 29-36. Polk, Noel, ed. William Faulkner 's "A Rose for Emily." The Harcourt Casebook Series in Literature. Fort Worth: Harcourt, 2000. Scherting, Jack. "Emily Grierson 's Oedipus Complex: Motif, Motive, and Meaning in Faulkner 's ‘A Rose for Emily. '" Polk, 110-119.