How Does A Rose For Emily Change

The short story, “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner, was written in 1930. Faulkner creates a narrative of a mysterious old woman, Miss Emily, dying and the town uncovering a disturbing secret amidst her death. Miss Emily Grierson lived in a small old southern town and remained a constant in an ever-changing society. She refused to develop or communicate with her surroundings, leaving the town to speculate about her secret and dated life. Two main parts of Miss Emily’s life fueled the rumors of the town, they were her being a single southern woman and her families long social status within the town. Miss Emily did not associate with the town leaving imaginations to grow wild when she started to openly show interest in and socialize with

Many times she is depicted in a statuesque type of way. In the first few lines of the text she is described as a “fallen monument” and “a tradition” (Faulkner 1). Two long descriptions in the text stand out in conveying this image: “a window that had been dark was lighted and Miss Emily sat in it, the light behind her, and her upright torso motionless as that of an idol” and “her hair was cut short, making her look like a girl, with a vague resemblance to those angels in colored church windows-sort of tragic and serene” (Faulkner 3). These two quotes compare Miss Emily to known images that evoke pride, tradition, and respect. The description of the light behind a still Miss Emily creates the image of a stone monument standing tall being lite from behind to create opposition from the dark around it. This can be compared to the monuments of the old south surrounding the confederacy. This also makes sense because of Miss Emily’s tie to the confederacy through her father. The comparison of Miss Emily’s appearance to that of “angels in colored church windows” is very interesting as it adds a sense of purity to this woman who we later find out is lying with a man out of wedlock who is also deceased, creating this opposition between her physical appearance and her actions. This can be connected to how woman in the old south, especially in 1930 were displayed as a sexualized housewife who lived in domestic bliss, despite the economic downfall taking place around her. Lastly, Miss Emily’s death in connection to her symbolism as a monument to the old south displays an important message that relates to the historical context of the Southern Renaissance. That being that some values of the old south are outdated and carry harm to some individuals causing a need for them to be disposed of paralleling to Miss Emily