Introduction
Pieces of literature written in the XX century may dramatically vary as the world had been promptly changing during that period, having gone through two World Wars, traumas of totalitarian regimes, anticolonial movements, and other traumatic experiences. Nevertheless, some themes appear to be timeless, and solitariness in all its forms is one of them. “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner and “Those Who Walk Away from Omelas” by Ursula K. Le Guin demonstrate how different the narrative on a common theme can be, considering the characters, the expressive means applied and the messages translated.
Main body
To begin with, one shall draw their attention to what the narrators are like in pieces. On the one hand, there is a question of whether “A Rose for Emily” narrator represents the perspective of the city that tells the story. The reader does not know to which sex they might belong to and can only guess that the narrator is an aged person who observes Emily’s entire life. Probably, they might belong to the local authorities as they refer to the group that came to discuss the tax issue with Emily as “we.” However, one might also notice the fact that the people in town do not seem to share the affection expressed by the narrator throughout the story until the very end when a horrible event is uncovered. The narrator is as sympathetic as respectful towards Emily. They admire the way she manages to get the poison or to vanquish the city council members. Hence, the narrator appears to be an unnamed part of the community different from the latter as they do not condemn either of her actions and treat Emily with respect.
On the other hand, the narrator of “Those Who Walk Away from Omelas” seems to be the person distant from the city and described events. As if they once visited Omelas or heard of the place from somebody else, or, more lifelike, they invent the story as they write it. In a way, the narrator serves as a guide in the made-up city that seems utopian until the readers find out about the child suffering in the basement and guaranteeing the happiness of everybody else in Omelas. The narrator does not openly express sympathy and does not criticize the citizens for their moral choice. However, the dilemma posed by the story is as evident as the heroic nature of the ones “who walk away.” In a word, though seeming unreliable, the narrator appears to be the only ridge between Le Grain’s world and readers.
Speaking of the characters, the nature of their solitude seems quite different. As for Emily and the position she finds herself, one may think she enjoys more freedom to choose her lifestyle. Hence, the isolation she practices seems to be the result of her will in comparison to the child from “Those Who Walk Away from Omelas.” Nevertheless, the narrator seems to be sympathetic to Emily partially cause her father pushed her to her solitude (Faulkner 1). They convince the reader that she suffers from her loneliness as only a desperate person can kill the loved one in order to keep them close. There is also an opinion that Emily locked herself out of shame for being abandoned by the fiancé, but that is not a free will. “A Rose for Emily” is a rather tragic title that demonstrates how little the main character had in her life. Therefore, it would be unfair to claim that Emily’s solitude is an independent decision. Instead, a series of unfortunate circumstances and social conventions pushed her to the life she lived.
As for “Those Who Walk Away from Omelas,” the narrator seemingly presents the situation more univocally. There is hardly a more unethical action than locking a child in a dark and dirty room alone for the sake of everybody else’s happiness. The infant is an evident victim of the situation. They are not anything more, as the reader does not find out anything about their character: the narrator emphasizes that it is not essential by giving unclear details like “it could be a boy or a girl” (Le Guin 3). However, what some readers may forget is that the child is not the only lonely personage of the story. As the title says, the narrator means to draw their readers’ attention to “those who walk away” from the city. The ones who choose to give up the perfect life of Omelas after finding out the price of this happiness. Hence, while the lonely child is a martyr, those who leave Omelas and choose solitude are the heroes for the narrator.
Another point to be made is that places appear to be another expressive means that both Faulkner and Le Guin apply in their texts. As for “A Rose for Emily,” its narrator sees Emily’s room for the first time after her death. They describe the place as the following: “a thin, acrid pall as of the tomb seemed to lie everywhere upon this room decked and furnished as for a bridal: upon the valance curtains of a faded rose color, upon the rose-shaded lights, upon the dressing table, upon the delicate array of crystal and the man’s toilet things backed with tarnished silver, silver so tarnished that the monogram was obscured” (Faulkner 6). Providing the readers with all these details, the narrator translates the creepy, dark, and yet strangely peaceful atmosphere of the room. That is precisely what they need to prepare the audience for the main twist of the story – discovering the body. In other words, the description of Emily’s room becomes the final detail that explains the narrator’s attitude towards the main character as well as uncovers her personality to the readers’ eyes.
What Le Guin does is the construction of dichotomy between the never-ending Festival of Summer in Omelas and the filthy basement where the child spends its time: “in a basement under one of the beautiful public buildings” (Le Guin 3). On the one hand, there is music on the streets, naked cheerful children, and horses wearing no gear (Le Guin 1). On the other, the narrator creates the image of the darkest and saddest place in the world that has only one locked door and no windows (Le Guin 3). One can imagine that the child is almost blind as “a little light seeps in dustily between cracks in the boards, secondhand from a cobwebbed window somewhere across the cellar” (Le Guin 3). Hence, the description of the location serves the construction of conflict between the utopian Omelas and the dark basement where the child lives.
Finally, it is important to compare to messages translated by the narrators. “A Rose for Emily” had multiple motives, and solitude is seen as a means chosen by Emily to overcome a tragedy. The narrator seems to translate the conviction that any loss and unhappiness. As for “Those Who Walk Away from Omelas,” it poses a more general ethical question among its readers who are supposed to realize that Omelas, while seeming unrealistic is the world the humanity has always lived in. The narrator invites their reader to make the moral choice once again; however, they also evidently glorify the ones who refuse to be happy for the price of a child’s life. Hence, these two stories, despite being united by a common theme, develop different discussions on solitude.
Conclusion
To conclude, “A Rose for Emily” by Faulkner and “Those Who Walk Away from Omelas” by Le Guin are pieces devoted to one of the timeless problems of loneliness. Narrators in both stories are not active participants of the events, but this seems to be one of the few common traits shared by the works. If the narrator in Faulkner’s story represents a sympathetic part of the local community observing the life of Emily’s, the one telling the story of Omelas simply makes it up. They construct problems different in their nature, showing that solitude may be a result of one’s passiveness like in Emily’s case, a sacrifice like it was with the child or a heroic act as it is described when individuals leave from Omelas. Nevertheless, both narrators apply the location description in order to strengthen the atmosphere or the conflict. Finally, the messages communicated are quite different, yet, both deep and trilling.
Works Cited
Faulkner, William. “A Rose for Emily.” Biblioteka, 2020. Web.
Le Guin, Ursula K. “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas.” Semantics Scholar, Web.