A Rose For EmilyThe short story “A Rose For Emily” draws a vivid picture of the southern town Jeffers on of the United States. Though the plot is not complicated, yet it can be regarded as a panorama of Faulkner’s works. It attracts readers’ attention successfully and makes u s immersed in the whole story. And the ingenious usage of symbolism is a distinctive f eature, which makes the story filled with profound implications. There are several different symbolic subjects in it, such as the house, Miss Emily, Barron Homer and so on. In this thesis, the author tries to discuss them one by one from his point of view.Backgrounds IntroductionThis story happens after the American Civil War, in Jefferson Town. It’s a story about an eccentric spinster named Emily Grierson whose marriage is totally manipulated by her father. Two years after her father’s death, poor Emily is acquainted with a northern er called Homer Barron, a day laborer and she falls in love with him. However, their r elation is short-lived as Homer becomes tired of her and intends to get rid of her. In or der to keep Homer at hand, Emily kills him with arsenic and “obtain” him, thus, she sl eeps with his corpse for decades. This is the truth that villagers find after her death. Fr om my own perspective, this masterpiece reflects the decline of the southern society a nd reveals the conflicts between the two different value systems and two societies afte r the American Civil War.character & SymbolismIn this novel, Emily symbolizes the South, old and tradition, the Yankee represents the North, new and modern. Both young guys might be interested in each other when the y first meet. But they possess altogether different values or concept of lives. So they i nevitably separated before long. The conflict between the two partners symbolizes the conflict between the South and the North. And the absurd murder aggravates the cont radictions.The “Rose”, that is never mentioned in this novel, is always interpreted conventionall y as a symbol of love. It might be used as the love Emily gets from her lover. But in m y opinion the rose mainly represents decay and death. At the time the villagers went toher room and found the valance curtains of faded rose color and the rose-shaded light s in the room. Actually, the author plays a trick on Miss Emily. In fact, she doesn’t rea lly get any love from any man whether it is from her lover or her father. Emily could h ave a favorable marriage but for her father’s interference. She could have got her dese rved love from Homer. But on account of her obstinacy and pride, she receives tiredne ss and indifference, instead of affection---rose, from him. Thus, as an outsider, the aut hor or the villagers, they give a rose as a tribute to Emily. Besides, the rose also stands for the author’s andvillagers’ pity, sympathy and lament for Emily, whose mind is imprisoned in the past and fails to adapt to the change. What’s more, the author, “William Faulkner objectifie s his complicated and emotional involvement in the South and in the people who grow up and live there ever since”ThemeThe theme is developed through an exceptionally well-crafted story. Told from a third -person plural point of view, it reveals the reactions of the town to Miss Emily. As this “we” narrator shifts allegiance--now criticizing Miss Emily, now sympathizing with h er--the reader sees the trap in which she is caught, and the extensive but unobtrusive f oreshadowing prepares the reader for the story’s final revelation without detracting fro m its force.My FeelingsWhen I finished reading the story, a sincere sympathy emerges in my mind. Emily is t otally a tragedy of the old traditions. She is a prisoner of the past, of the social and mo ral taboos of the South. Not only because she is purely a woman, but also the stubborn conventions manacle her that result in her frustrated life. Even so，she could have a better life after her father’s death. However, she doesn’t get out of th e tower her father built for her. On the contrary, she builds another one, and locks her soul. In our daily life, everything is changing everyday. As an individual, we can only adapt ourselves to the protean environment and should learn to accept new things. Onl y when we keep learning everyday can we survive in this world which is full of comp etition.“A Rose for Emily” is divided into five sections.The first section opens with a description of the Grierson house in Jefferson. The narr ator mentions that over the past 100 years, Miss Emily Grierson’s home has fall into d isrepair and become “an eyesore among eyesores.” The first sentence of the story sets the tone of how the citizens of Jefferson felt about Emily: “When Miss Emily Grierso n died, our whole town went to the funeral: the men through a sort of respectful affection for a fallen monument, the women mostly out of curiosity to see the inside of her house, which no one save an old manservant – a combined gardener and cook – had s een in at least ten years.”It is known around town that Emily Grierson has not had guests in her home for the p ast decade, except her black servant who runs errands for her to and from the market. When a new city council takes over, however, they begin to tax her once again. She re fuses to pay the taxes and appear before the sheriff, so the city authorities invite thems elves into her house. When confronted on her tax evasion, Emily reminds them that sh e doesn't have to pay taxes in Jefferson and to speak to Colonel Sartoris, although he h ad died 10 years before.In section two, the narrator explains that the Griersons had always been a very proud Southern family. Mr. Grierson, Emily’s father, believes no man is suitable for his daug hter and doesn't allow her to date. Emily is largely dependent upon her father, and is l eft foundering when he dies. After Mr. Grierson's death, Emily does not allow the auth orities to remove his body for three days, claiming he is still alive. She breaks down a nd allows authorities to take the body away for a quick burial.Section three introduces Emily’s beau, Homer Barron, a foreman from the north. Hom er comes to Jefferson with a crew of men to build sidewalks outside the Grierson hom e. After Emily and Homer are seen driving through town several times, Emily visits a druggist. There, she asks to purchase arsenic. The druggist asks what the arsenic is for since it was required of him to ask by law. Emily does not respond and coldly stares h im down until he looks away and gives her the arsenic. When Emily opens the packag e, underneath the skull and bones sign is written, "For Rats."Citizens of Jefferson believe that Miss Emily is going to commit suicide since Homer has not yet proposed in the beginning of section four. The townspeople contact and in vite Emily's two cousins to comfort her. Shortly after their arrival, Homer leaves and t hen returns after the cousins leave Jefferson. After staying in Jefferson for one night, Homer is never seen again. After Homer’s disappearance, Emily begins to age, gain w eight, and is rarely seen outside of her home. Soon, Miss Emily passes away.The fifth and final section begins with Jefferson women entering the Grierson home. After they arrive, Emily's black servant leaves through the back door without saying a word. After Emily's funeral, the townspeople immediately go through her house. The y come across a room on the second floor which no one had seen in 40 years, and brea k the door down. They discover a dusty room strangely decorated as a bridal room. Th e room contains a man's tie, suit and shoes, and a silver toilet set which Miss Emily ha d purchased for Homer years before his disappearance. Homer's remains lay on the be d, dressed in a nightshirt. Next to him is an impression of a head on a pillow where th e townspeople find a single “long strand of iron-gray hair.” It is thus implied that notonly had Emily killed Homer with the arsenic, but also has had an intimate relationshi p with his corpse up to her own death. 简评：Miss Emily met Homer Baron, a foreman with a construction company, when her ho metown was first getting paved streets. Her father had already died but, not before dri ving away her eligible suitors. As rumors circulate about her possible marriage to a Ya nkee, Homer leaves town abruptly. During his absence, Miss Emily buys rat poison. When Homer returns, the townspeople see him enter Miss Emily’s house but not leave . Only when she dies do the townspeople discover his corpse on a bed in her house an d, next to it, a strand of Miss Emily’s hair.This Gothic plot makes serious points about woman’s place in society. Throughout the story, the reader is aware that these events are taking place during a time of transition : The town is finally getting sidewalks and mailboxes. More important, values are cha nging. The older magistrates, for example, looked on Miss Emily paternally and refus ed to collect taxes from her; the newer ones try, unsuccessfully, to do so.Caught in these changing times, Miss Emily is trapped in her role as genteel spinster. Without a husband, her life will have no meaning. She tries to give lessons in painting china but cannot find pupils for this out-of-date hobby and finally discontinues them. If Homer is thinking of abandoning her, as his departure implies, one can understand her desire to clutch at any sort of union, even a marriage in death.The theme is developed through an exceptionally well-crafted story. Told from a third -person plural point of view, it reveals the reactions of the town to Miss Emily. As this “we” narrator shifts allegiance--now criticizing Miss Emily, now sympathizing with h er--the reader sees the trap in which she is caught, and the extensive but unobtrusive f oreshadowing prepares the reader for the story’s final revelation without detracting fro m its force.。
