The short story A Rose for Emily is the tale about Emily Grierson and the time leading to her death. Emily was raised by her father to have a sense of class and expectation to be treated as such.
Emily grew up in an era where black women were not allowed to be on the street without aprons, this was set into motion by her father. Her house was on one of the nicer streets in the town and was kept well. Emily was raised by her controlling father who never thought any suitor for his girl was good enough.He had made arrangements when Emily was a child that he should never have to pay taxes. This was indicative of the power her family once reveled in.
Years later Emily’s father passed away and over the years Emily became less revered by the community and more pitied. She had lost who she was when her father died and seemed to have no real concept of people and money, just that her family had it at one time. This is described in the story when her taxes become overdue and town’s officials came to her home to collect.No one had been in the Grierson home for some time, not even when there was a stench of death surrounding it that had the neighbors complaining, but no one wanted to approach a “lady” about her order.
Upon entering the home the town officials found that the leather on the chairs were cracked with age and Emily was walking with a faded cane and looked ill. When asked about back taxes Emily told the officials to speak to Colonel Sartoris, a man who had been dead for ten years but had arranged for her father to not pay taxes.Emily lived alone except for her servant being that her father passed away and her hopeful suitor abandoned her. In the tale Emily meets another potential suitor but he had stated he preferred the company of men and enjoyed drinking with young men.
The women of the town were surprised that Emily would like this man for he was a day laborer and not a man anyone thought she would entertain pursuing or gallivanting around town being that she was an Episcopalian. The new suitor, Homer, begins to drive Emily around and show her attention.The townspeople were happy thinking that poor Emily would marry Homer but when she did not they viewed it as inappropriate. Homer disappears from the story soon after there was talk that Emily wanted to be wed.
Years pass, Emily dies at the age of seventy-four. At this time people are invited into her home for the first time in forty years. Upon entering the house the guests are elated to have a chance to see the room Emily had sealed up years ago. In the room they find Homer’s body laid on the bed, a suit for a wedding laid out, and indent in the pillow next to his dead body were it is believed Emily slept.The main character of this story is Emily Grierson.
The author does a good job of introducing her to the story noting in the first sentence, “When Miss Emily Grierson died, our whole town went to her funeral…” (Bohner 404). From the beginning the reader gets a sense of interest in Emily and that she was played an important role in her town. Emily’s character as described by the narrator is very consistent. She was raised as a person of wealth who was sheltered from the outside world.Emily seems to have a lack of finesse when dealing with other people finesse, a person of wealth and class should have. Emily’s character was strong yet weak at the same time and the narrator notes this in her altercation with the druggist.
“She carried her head high enough-even when we believed that she was fallen” (Bohner 407). The author allows the reader to get to know Emily from beginning to end. There is a sense of sorrow for the character that in the end shows the town that she was not as cold as she portrayed but desperately alone, so alone she would kill to Homer to keep him from leaving.There was a bit of symbolism within the plot of the story Emily was a strong woman who had wealth and whose family had influence within the community. Her home was large and grand with servants.
In the story as Emily withers so do the things around her. Her home is unkempt as is she. Her leather chairs are cracked with age and inattentiveness as is Emily’s relationship with her fellow man. She is cracked like that leather chair, withered and in need of attention and affection that she does not know how to ask for or receive.
