A Rose for Emily Short Analysis 2
Alyssa Babineaux
Mr. Clay Weill
Fiction Paper Rough Draft
22 October 2010
“A Rose for Emily” Analysis William Faulkner wrote a tale about an old woman living in the town of Jefferson called “A Rose for Emily”. Faulkner wrote the setting of the story in the 1900’s era. “A Rose for Emily” illustrates the theme of decay in the town, the house, and in Miss Emily herself. He opens the story as the town finds out about Emily's death. An unknown narrator who lives in the town of Jefferson recounts the story. We learn of the life and times of Emily, her relationship with the town, her father, her lover and the disturbing truth that she was hiding at the end. The story begins at the huge funeral for Miss Emily Grierson. Nobody visited her house in ten years, except for her servant. She had the best house in town even though it was old. The town had a special relationship with Miss Emily ever since it decided to stop billing her for taxes in 1894. The townspeople made the "newer generation" unhappy with this arrangement, and so they paid a visit to Miss Emily and tried to get her to pay the debt. The townspeople trying to make Emily pay her debt acts as the pinch in the story. She refused to acknowledge that the old arrangement might not work anymore, and flatly refused to pay. The quote, “In this world, nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes,” acts as the inciting incident in this plot which also triggers a flashback. Tax collectors encountered Miss Emily thirty years before regarding the odor around her house. Miss Emily had lost her father two years prior and then love of her life disappeared. The odor grew stronger and complaints were made, but the authorities didn't want to confront Emily about the problem. They sprinkled lime around the house, and the smell eventually disappeared. Everybody felt sorry for Emily when her father died. He left her with the house, but no money. Emily refused to admit that her father died for four whole days.
Mr. Clay Weill
Fiction Paper Rough Draft
22 October 2010
“A Rose for Emily” Analysis William Faulkner wrote a tale about an old woman living in the town of Jefferson called “A Rose for Emily”. Faulkner wrote the setting of the story in the 1900’s era. “A Rose for Emily” illustrates the theme of decay in the town, the house, and in Miss Emily herself. He opens the story as the town finds out about Emily's death. An unknown narrator who lives in the town of Jefferson recounts the story. We learn of the life and times of Emily, her relationship with the town, her father, her lover and the disturbing truth that she was hiding at the end. The story begins at the huge funeral for Miss Emily Grierson. Nobody visited her house in ten years, except for her servant. She had the best house in town even though it was old. The town had a special relationship with Miss Emily ever since it decided to stop billing her for taxes in 1894. The townspeople made the "newer generation" unhappy with this arrangement, and so they paid a visit to Miss Emily and tried to get her to pay the debt. The townspeople trying to make Emily pay her debt acts as the pinch in the story. She refused to acknowledge that the old arrangement might not work anymore, and flatly refused to pay. The quote, “In this world, nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes,” acts as the inciting incident in this plot which also triggers a flashback. Tax collectors encountered Miss Emily thirty years before regarding the odor around her house. Miss Emily had lost her father two years prior and then love of her life disappeared. The odor grew stronger and complaints were made, but the authorities didn't want to confront Emily about the problem. They sprinkled lime around the house, and the smell eventually disappeared. Everybody felt sorry for Emily when her father died. He left her with the house, but no money. Emily refused to admit that her father died for four whole days.