‘A Rose for Emily’, by Faulkner, is based in the American South which includes the strong discrimination against the Afro American people in the late 1800’s. However, my passage below is mainly focused on the strange life of a lonely woman, Miss Emily.
This short story conveys about man’s battle against society, an eccentric resistance to change in and a stubborn clinging unto tradition. This theme is accomplished through the character of Emily Grierson. Faulkner describes Emily as secretive and dislikeable, even though the text lacks of a detailed description of Ms. Emily’s personality. This can be explained either by the limitation of time and length that Faulkner had due to the magazine format where the author was writing this novel in, or by the writer’s purpose to describe the character briefly to give a mysterious effect to the readers. Regardless, I find it of interest to fill-in this gap as a study in narration.
The aim of this piece is to provide a descriptive narration based upon the scene where the Board of Aldermen visiting Emily’s house. Contrasting with Faulkner’s description of happenings in Emily’s house with my own, I hope that mine is an improvement, through the use of historical details, upon the atmosphere and from the individual characters description, supporting other main characters from the story as well.
This short story conveys about man’s battle against society, an eccentric resistance to change in and a stubborn clinging unto tradition. This theme is accomplished through the character of Emily Grierson. Faulkner describes Emily as secretive and dislikeable, even though the text lacks of a detailed description of Ms. Emily’s personality. This can be explained either by the limitation of time and length that Faulkner had due to the magazine format where the author was writing this novel in, or by the writer’s purpose to describe the character briefly to give a mysterious effect to the readers. Regardless, I find it of interest to fill-in this gap as a study in narration.
The aim of this piece is to provide a descriptive narration based upon the scene where the Board of Aldermen visiting Emily’s house. Contrasting with Faulkner’s description of happenings in Emily’s house with my own, I hope that mine is an improvement, through the use of historical details, upon the atmosphere and from the individual characters description, supporting other main characters from the story as well.
There were two men in black formal trousers, a vest and a tailcoat. The trousers were blackish in colour. They wearing leather shoes with buckles, neatly buttoned-up, one could be recognized their fields of work. Mr. Bald, the mayor, and Mr. William, the aldermen, had the quick look of dollar counting men. Even though they looked annoyed and irritated, they were knocking at Miss Emily’s door softly.
Miss Emily’s house was fully covered with menacing rotten roses. The house itself gave a look of a typically abandoned place. After Mr. Bald knocking several times, a tall and tough-skinned Negro opened the door, gazing at them for few seconds. There was a discomforting silence when the door opened. It looked like as if a stream of cold air was leaking out from the house, the air freezing my self-confidence, making me even more frightened.
The two men were pompous, whereas could feel their jitters of meeting Miss Emily. They were stepping in the house with quiet and nervous steps as if they were cats on a stranger’s house, a fearful house. Their footsteps echoed in the dim hall. Inside Emily’s house, the dank smell has made the nose itchy. When the Negro lit up the candle, I was able to see the dust flying in the air and large piece of white sheets covering all the furniture. After entering Emily’s house everyone seemed hard of speech, in particular no one wanted to mention the tax problem. Their mouths were mumbling, trying to find the perfect time to speak.
In sudden, Mr. Bald has slowly opened his mouth. “Miss Emily, we are here to collect your tax..” the voice shivered but every words were spoken in straight tone. While the clock was tick-tacking, there was a sharp hill tip tapping down from the left cornered stairs. While everyone’s attention was dragged to the mysterious character; Miss Emily, I followed the long shadow of the candle which led me to a huge framed painting.
It was a one traditional oil portrait of Miss Emily’s father and Miss Emily herself. The painting was placed right above the dishevelled fireplace. Somehow, Miss Emily’s father seemed to be looking down at the others in full ignorance, even though it was just a painting. The rough irregular brush strokes which made Miss Emily’s father, it was shown his rough, strict and powerful personality that came through. His perfectly shaped beard showed his full authority and self-confidence. The tightly waxed hair shows his cold humanity without allowing even the slightest mistake. Straight-faced, Miss Emily’s father seemed to make an eye contact, and that made others feel guilty and to evade. His dark eyes seemed to have been truthfully honourable, full leadership and eagerness. From the elaborate decorations on his coat, it defined him an ostentatious individual he was to others by his appearance.
Right beside Miss Emily’s father, there Miss Emily was, standing with her right hand on her father’s right shoulder. Miss Emily was wearing a pure white dress with a colourful necklace. Differing from her father, his austerity, Miss Emily had no facial expression, instead she looked dead, like a puppet. The white dress made Miss Emily’s skin even paler and from her one very simple colourful necklace, it was shown that she was perhaps less greedy but more truthful, one who is far more simple in appearance. Her beautiful shiny eyes seemed to be enclosing her secret love within full sadness. Her dried lips recorded her long secret life alienated. And her necklace, that colourful necklace, seemed her heart pumping as a means of staying alive.
Miss Emily’s house was fully covered with menacing rotten roses. The house itself gave a look of a typically abandoned place. After Mr. Bald knocking several times, a tall and tough-skinned Negro opened the door, gazing at them for few seconds. There was a discomforting silence when the door opened. It looked like as if a stream of cold air was leaking out from the house, the air freezing my self-confidence, making me even more frightened.
The two men were pompous, whereas could feel their jitters of meeting Miss Emily. They were stepping in the house with quiet and nervous steps as if they were cats on a stranger’s house, a fearful house. Their footsteps echoed in the dim hall. Inside Emily’s house, the dank smell has made the nose itchy. When the Negro lit up the candle, I was able to see the dust flying in the air and large piece of white sheets covering all the furniture. After entering Emily’s house everyone seemed hard of speech, in particular no one wanted to mention the tax problem. Their mouths were mumbling, trying to find the perfect time to speak.
In sudden, Mr. Bald has slowly opened his mouth. “Miss Emily, we are here to collect your tax..” the voice shivered but every words were spoken in straight tone. While the clock was tick-tacking, there was a sharp hill tip tapping down from the left cornered stairs. While everyone’s attention was dragged to the mysterious character; Miss Emily, I followed the long shadow of the candle which led me to a huge framed painting.
It was a one traditional oil portrait of Miss Emily’s father and Miss Emily herself. The painting was placed right above the dishevelled fireplace. Somehow, Miss Emily’s father seemed to be looking down at the others in full ignorance, even though it was just a painting. The rough irregular brush strokes which made Miss Emily’s father, it was shown his rough, strict and powerful personality that came through. His perfectly shaped beard showed his full authority and self-confidence. The tightly waxed hair shows his cold humanity without allowing even the slightest mistake. Straight-faced, Miss Emily’s father seemed to make an eye contact, and that made others feel guilty and to evade. His dark eyes seemed to have been truthfully honourable, full leadership and eagerness. From the elaborate decorations on his coat, it defined him an ostentatious individual he was to others by his appearance.
Right beside Miss Emily’s father, there Miss Emily was, standing with her right hand on her father’s right shoulder. Miss Emily was wearing a pure white dress with a colourful necklace. Differing from her father, his austerity, Miss Emily had no facial expression, instead she looked dead, like a puppet. The white dress made Miss Emily’s skin even paler and from her one very simple colourful necklace, it was shown that she was perhaps less greedy but more truthful, one who is far more simple in appearance. Her beautiful shiny eyes seemed to be enclosing her secret love within full sadness. Her dried lips recorded her long secret life alienated. And her necklace, that colourful necklace, seemed her heart pumping as a means of staying alive.