A Rose For Emily: Emily Grierson's Denial Of Change
A Rose for Emily
William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” is based around the telling of the life and habits of a fictional character, Emily Grierson. She is deeply disturbed and equally provocative in many ways. The narrator of the story as well as the many different townspeople give insight as to who Emily is, how she acts and what she does. Some literary analysts like Elizabeth Kurtz claim that the rose in the story, which is only given to Emily by the title, is a symbol for Emily’s denial of change (Kurtz). It is this denial of change that drives Emily to madness? Other superior analysts, like James M. Wallace, claim that none of the gossip in the story really matters, and people should only scrutinize the narrator. Faulkner himself was once quoted saying, “Given a choice between grief and nothing, I’d choose grief” (Famous Quotes). This statement is seen in the story on many occasions. Emily chooses the grieving for her father, her suitor, and even her taxes over the nothingness of living without them, which is very ironic. Emily chooses not to grieve for them but to …show more content…
She is afraid to let go of the things that she has in her life and she did not want it to change. There are so many different interpretations of this story, but a majority of them point to the same point. She is afraid of change, and death is the main underlying theme in the story.
Works Cited
Blythe, Hal. "Faulkner 's 'A Rose For Emily '." Explicator 47.2 (1989): 49-50. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 25 September 2013.
"Famous Quotes at BrainyQuote." Famous Quotes at BrainyQuote. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Oct. 2013. .
Faulkner, William. "A Rose for Emily." American Studies @ The University of Virginia. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 September 2013.
Getty, Laura J. "Faulkner 's 'A Rose For Emily '." Explicator 63.4 (2005): 230-234. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 23 September
William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” is based around the telling of the life and habits of a fictional character, Emily Grierson. She is deeply disturbed and equally provocative in many ways. The narrator of the story as well as the many different townspeople give insight as to who Emily is, how she acts and what she does. Some literary analysts like Elizabeth Kurtz claim that the rose in the story, which is only given to Emily by the title, is a symbol for Emily’s denial of change (Kurtz). It is this denial of change that drives Emily to madness? Other superior analysts, like James M. Wallace, claim that none of the gossip in the story really matters, and people should only scrutinize the narrator. Faulkner himself was once quoted saying, “Given a choice between grief and nothing, I’d choose grief” (Famous Quotes). This statement is seen in the story on many occasions. Emily chooses the grieving for her father, her suitor, and even her taxes over the nothingness of living without them, which is very ironic. Emily chooses not to grieve for them but to …show more content…
She is afraid to let go of the things that she has in her life and she did not want it to change. There are so many different interpretations of this story, but a majority of them point to the same point. She is afraid of change, and death is the main underlying theme in the story.
Works Cited
Blythe, Hal. "Faulkner 's 'A Rose For Emily '." Explicator 47.2 (1989): 49-50. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 25 September 2013.
"Famous Quotes at BrainyQuote." Famous Quotes at BrainyQuote. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Oct. 2013. .
Faulkner, William. "A Rose for Emily." American Studies @ The University of Virginia. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 September 2013.
Getty, Laura J. "Faulkner 's 'A Rose For Emily '." Explicator 63.4 (2005): 230-234. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 23 September