After the civil war ended in 1865, a lot changed in the southern states. Being a region that mainly depended on agriculture they had to resolve how they would proceed with their lives as new developments were being made all over and they had to adapt fast. In Jefferson, Mississippi, almost everyone in the town had decided to adapt to these recent changes except for a particular resident in the town Emily Grierson who was a tough conservative and was reluctant to any sort of change. Her reluctance made her hold onto social conventions that were no longer relevant, and in the process, she detached herself from the Jefferson community and their new way of life. The author’s idea is to try and give the reader an impression of the importance of change when one is forced by circumstances. Faulkner efficiently uses different symbols in the story to show Emily’s drive and sensation. The story is a typical southern gothic tale.
The character of Emily Grierson has been portrayed as a very dynamic person, strong with a sense of tradition but also, with a distorted perception of the world. However, her seeming insanity leads her to murder. This also appears to be balanced in her character with a strong sense of pride. This is portrayed by both her and her father.
In the story, Emily Grierson shows strength in an instance like where she snubs the men sent to collect tax, knowing very well that her witness colonel Sartoris has been dead for years. Another instance is when she sees men around her house throwing lime to counter the pathetic smell but appears to stand firmly observing them. However, this sort of strength that is shown is a mere cover-up to hide her low self-esteem issues. Emily is only trying to come to terms with the changing times.
Deep respect is also shown in Emily’s character. In addition, some form of reliance on her ancestry and the past is portrayed. This is due to where her family comes from the south is popular with using the old style or being conservative.
A good example is when she asks the tax officials to leave and calls his black servant Tobe. “Show these gentlemen out” (Faulkner 2). The town changes as it continues to develop. However, she reluctantly does not. She uses the past as a scapegoat to dictate how she wants to live. This has been demonstrated when she says “I have no taxes in Jefferson. Colonel Sartoris explained it to me. Perhaps one of you can gain access to the city records and satisfy yourselves “(Faulkner 2). This was her technique of trying to steer clear of taxes by using an old myth.
Considering the situation where she gets involved with him, this is a man who is working for the city. Baron Homer persuades her to live with him. This is a manner in which she would have acted in days that have already gone. This definitely meant that she is not acting her age. But this can only be attributed to her delicate mental state, making her go a long way in protecting her interests to the extent that she kills Homer with arsenic acid. She not only engages in this criminal act but she goes a step further to continue sleeping with Homer’s dead body until the time of her demise. This sort of action can only be associated with a very sick and troubled individual.
Thus, the character of Emily starts as a young girl envied by both men and women for different reasons as asserted by Faulkner at the beginning of the story. The men envied her and considered her a monument of some sort and the women envied her rich background. This changes with time as Emily grows older and becomes a sad old woman living in self-confinement, consumed by loneliness and also the result of her father’s actions. She appears to have a slight chance of happiness when she meets Homer but it leads to more misery after she kills him. The once envied monument is now pitied by the same society because of what she turned out to be.
The changes in Emily’s life can be largely attributed to Emily’s father and her perception of change. Emily is portrayed as a young woman who is despoiled by her father’s overly strict mentality. Emily’s father is the only man in her life for the better part of her life. This makes Emily be in denial when he dies as Emily finds it difficult to let go. Emily’s father is a person with a stubborn perception of life. This attitude makes her seclude herself from society. Emily was raised with a silver spoon in a wealthy surrounding since her father was a very wealthy man. Her father even occasionally loaned the town. This sort of wealth made Emily grow up as a very selfish and spoiled individual never knowing the true value of a dollar.
When her father passed away, she ignored the surrounding degradation of her house and herself. She was in denial when her father passed away, ignoring the gossip about how she had turned out to be and she collided with the authorities who refused to abate taxes. Her life was unbecoming like the state of the house she was living in because she never got the proper love and care that she desired. She was unenthusiastic to changes that were taking place to the degree that she did not acknowledge the incumbent sheriff. This is clearly shown when she told the men who were sent “Perhaps he considers himself the sheriff… I have no taxes in Jefferson” (Faulkner 2).
Emily’s old-fashioned beliefs also made her shy to the community. She convinced herself if no person could see her, then no one would be in a position to make her change. Miss Emily did not accept change even if it was positive for her life. A good illustration is when she refused the new-fangled metal numbers. They were being introduced to be fixed on her door, and also to allow a mailbox. The mailbox was to be attached so that she could receive mail whenever it was free.
Symbolism is used by Faulkner though out the story to create a platform where the different persona of the characters, in different places, and during different events can be showcased. Faulkner has used the aspect of time to create good imagination of some details of the setting and some fine points of the setting to a good image of the element of time. He tries to steer clear of the sequential order of the events of Emily’s life, thus making the reader to be intrigued with the mystery and going further to let the reader study the mystery systematically. This enhances the story making to have two perspectives of time. These two are held by characters like the world and the present. This also involves the world that is of tradition and of the past time. The latter has its mathematical progression divided from them. The division is brought about by the narrow bottleneck of the most recent decade of years.
Symbolic rudiments are also used when it comes to the comparison of Grierson’s residence with the current condition of her life where Faulkner states that it’s adamant and coquettish decomposition above cotton wagons and the upcoming gas stations, it creates a bad image in the town of Jefferson. This was used to stress the point of how Emily’s mental and physical state had degraded.
According to the story ‘A Rose for Emily’, Emily Grierson is a person who has been brought up as a southern woman and has lived by extremely struggling with her sanity and the changing world around her. Her father is to blame for her developed behavior since she secluded Emily from the other members of the town. If Emily had been given a chance to interact with people of her own age, she might have turned out differently or maybe she was just mentally disturbed and her father tried to keep her away from society it will remain a mystery.
Works Cited
Faulkner, William. A Rose for Emily. New York: Harcourt College Publishers, 2000.