University Essay: Exploring Themes in 'A Rose for Emily'

This essay provides a comprehensive analysis of William Faulkner's short story, "A Rose for Emily." It delves into the themes of loneliness, isolation, and the protagonist's rejection of societal changes. The essay examines Emily Grierson's reclusive lifestyle and her struggle to adapt to the evolving world around her. It explores the significance of the setting, the characterization of Emily, and the societal context of the story, highlighting the family's clinging to the past and their sense of superiority. The essay also discusses the impact of the industrial revolution and the changing social dynamics on the Grierson family. Through detailed analysis, the essay reveals how Faulkner masterfully portrays the complexities of the human mind and the consequences of isolation and resistance to change.

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A ROSE FOR EMILY
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note
A Rose For Emily is considered to be one of the best short stories that was composed by
William Faulkner in the twentieth century. This short story is well-known for the vivid
description of the then society. The short story in discussion, A Rose For Emily, is considered
to be the best due to the depiction of the theme, the setting and the characterization within
the story. Emily Grierson the central character of the story is described to be holding on the past.
She displays a rejection to all the changes that have been taking place in the society with the
passage of time (Mays). Emily Grierson is observed to be living her life in reclusion from the
world that surrounds her. She displays a greater refusal for the acceptance as well as the
adaptation to the changes that have been taking place in the society that exists around her. The
following essay attempts some insight into the loneliness that encapsulates Emily Grierson. The
loneliness is resultant from the rejection of the social changes that have been surrounding her as
discussed within the story.
William Faulkner’s famous novel A Rose For Emily is well-known for the excellent
depiction of the themes of loneliness and isolation that were faced by the protagonist of the
protagonist of the novel. The story sheds a greater amount of light on the oppressive nature of
Emily Grierson’s spinsterhood. The storyline of the short story in discussion is responsible for
the revelation of the high respectability of the Grierson family who have been living in the
Jefferson area of Mississippi. The setting of the story discusses an era wherein the local families

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enjoyed a distinction on the basis of the status that they held in the society as well as the
reputation that the families held in the given society. The storyline of the short story reveals to its
readers the fact that the then society had been facing changes due to the industrial revolution
which resulted in introducing the motorized vehicles in the families that belonged to the upper-
middle class of the society. The author describes the family of the Griersons to be living within
an establishment that resembles a shamble. The description of the condition of the house is given
by the author through the words “lifting its stubborn and coquettish decay above the cotton
wagons and gasoline pumps” in a very vivid manner (Mays). The short story through the
condition of the establishment and the attitude demonstrated by the Griersons state that the
family has still been rejecting the social changes that had been occurring in the then society.
The Grierson family has been reflected to have a huge obsession on the superiority
complex that they have been demonstrating all throughout the short story. The words “the
Griersons held themselves a little too high for what they really were” by the author reveals this
superiority in a very vivid manner (Mays). These words reveal the huge amount of isolation that
is maintained by the Griersons as well as the social atmosphere that surrounds the Grierson
family. Emily Grierson demonstrates a higher degree of the reclusiveness. The locals view the
reclusiveness of Emily Grierson to be a mental illness on her part.
The author further states that Emily had not allowed the ministers and the concerned
doctors to bury her father after his demise. This helps the readers to develop an insight into the
functionalities of Emily’s brain. According to the short story, her father had rejected all marriage
proposals that came in for Emily on the grounds that “none of the young men were quite good
enough for Miss Emily” thereby retaining her spinsterhood for long (Mays). The author states
that the fear of loneliness had prompted her to undertake this step. Emily’s attitude finds and

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explanation in the words of the author that state “with nothing left, she would have to cling to
that which had robbed her, as people will” (Mays). The author states that Emily’s reclusiveness
finds its roots in the belief that she is superior to the locals. This had eventually led her to lock
herself in a house wherein she had been an alleged misfit. The story in discussion ends with the
death of the protagonist Emily Grierson. The person who had been appointed for maintaining the
reclusive nature of the house is observed to have open the house for the locals of the area before
leaving through the backdoor of the house.
A Rose For Emily is undoubtedly one of the best literary pieces that was composed by
William Faulkner. The story does a perfect job of attracting the readers as well as capturing their
minds to the complex workings of the human mind. The author of the story demonstrates a
greater quality in the depiction of the workings of the human mind and the complexity that the
human mind deal with ease.

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Works Cited
Mays, Kelly J., ed. The Norton Introduction to Literature. Portable 11th ed., W.W. Norton &
Company, 2014. (ISBN# 978-03939233939-1) 299-306