Foreshadowing in the Relationships between Emily, her Father
Foreshadowing in the Relationships between Emily, her Father and Her Lover in "A Rose for Emily" In "A Rose for Emily" William Faulkner uses the first person plural and uses the "we" point of view indicating events described by a resident of Jefferson. Jefferson is a town in the southern United States where the short story is taking place. It is a small white southern society town where everyone knows each other and knows everything about each other, and generally being such a small town during the early decades of the twentieth century no one kept a secret. Throughout the short story there is much comparison between Mr. Grierson, Emily's father and Emily's lover, Homer Barron. Emily Grierson's relationship with her father foreshadows her relationship with Homer. Growing up in this small town of Jefferson, Emily had no one in her life beside her father. The relationship between them was very strong. Mr. Grierson had prevented her from maturing sexually in the normal and natural way. Emily's father was a proud man "an imperious man, proud of his heritage and of his family's status in Jefferson-had constantly interposed himself between Emily and any male interested in courting her"
She does not rationalize her actions; she simply states how things are without asking herself for an explanation. Talking to the younger men, Homer stated he liked men. Emily just keeps repeating "I have no taxes in Jefferson" (Faulkner 404). This illustrates that no one really knew Emily at all, because before she died the town believed that Homer had left her. Emily is a character who fears change and will do anything to convince herself that everything can stay the same. When her boyfriend Homer wants to leave her, she cannot cope with this. Under the circumstances, even though Emily's father drove away all the young men, she still had an attachment for him. In looking back, Emily was disappointed that the townspeople took away her father's corpse and the attachment she had for him. Three days after his death, Emily being in denial about the lose of her father, she guarded his corpse and turned away everyone that would take him from her. Emily's desperation to not let Homer leave her means she does not give herself the opportunity to have a relationship with another man and find a suitable partner. Emily is unable to accept change and desperately clings to the past, while hoping that everything will stay the same. A good example is where the mayor visits her to insist that she pay taxes. However, nothing can stay the same forever. The whole town goes to her funeral but only because they are curious about the inside of her house. Emily can hardly be described as having no life.
Common topics in this essay:
Jefferson Emily,
Miss Emily,
Talking Homer,
Jefferson Faulkner,
Jefferson Jefferson,
William Faulkner,
Emily Grierson's,
Grierson Emily's,
homer leave,
Homer Growing,
emily's father,
believed homer left,
believed homer,
homer left,
jefferson emily,
short story,
minister's wife,
father's death,
rose emily,
town jefferson,
Rose Emily,
|