A Rose for Emily is a famous short story written by William Faulkner – an outstanding American writer. In the literary field there exist a great variety of interpretations of this story with an unusual ending. In my paper I will analyze how the oppression, domination and discrimination of women reflected in the short story.
First of all, the perverse attitude towards the main character Miss Emily is seen in the authors writing style and depiction of the protagonist. The description of Emily’s appearance causes nothing but disgust: “small, fat woman in black, with a thin gold chain descending to her waist and vanishing into her belt, leaning on an ebony cane with a tarnished gold head.” (Faulkner) The author uses such stylistic devices that only humiliate Miss Emily in the eyes of the reader. The simile “bloated, like a body long submerged in motion less water” and “like two small pieces of coal pressed into a lump of dough” are used to highlight Emily’s obesity. (Faulkner) It is not a surprising fact that the male writer focuses so much on the appearance and, more precisely, on the physique of the woman. Although, it is can be argued that Faulkner’s idea was to create such type of a character. But it should be mentioned that he could achieve this purpose referring to other Emily’s limitations like inner qualities, behavior or her way of life. The narration is not evaluative, but the diction evidences obvious dislike of the protagonist.
In my opinion, in the short story Miss Emily represents all women and the author’s attitude towards them. In addition, from the very beginning the narrator calls Emily ‘a duty’ and ‘obligation’ of the town as her taxes were remitted by the major. It is said that Colonel Sartoris created a tall story in order to make it work and only a woman could believe in such a fable. With this statement Faulkner hints on the stereotypic fact that women ‘love with their ears’ and are ready to believe any nonsense a man can tell them.
Secondly, the examples of male-dominated society discriminating women are depicted in the short story. According to the text, the town was and is ruled by men. The mentioned Colonel Sartoris, for example, was famous for “the edict that no Negro woman should appear on the streets without an apron.” (Faulkner) The quote suggests not only sexual, but also racial discrimination against females. The male domination is straight-forwardly depicted in the short story.
The next example is the issue with a gross smell that was coming from Miss Emily’s house. A lot of females complained to the city hall about it and asked the major to take necessary measures. According to Renée R. Curry and the article “Gender and Authorial Limitation in Faulkner's A Rose for Emily”, “The judge only feels it necessary to act after a man complains.” (Curry, 394) It seems that women have no rights in the town and male-government refuses to listen to the females’ complaints and ideas. In addition, the fact that men did not care about their female citizens is proved with the scene where Miss Emily buys poison. She refuses to state the reason of such a purchase, as it required by the law, but the druggist does not bother to ask spare questions, although he has some suspicions.
Thirdly, the Miss Emily’s hyperbolized obsession of men also proves the thesis. According to the text, Emily did not want to acknowledge and accept her father’s death. For three days she refused to let people in and take a body to be buried. This is the evidence of Emily’s attachment to her father and her submissiveness to him. Being older, she still keeps his portray that can be a symbol of both his dominance and her humility. Furthermore, the same thing happens with her beloved Homer Barron. Emily poisons him and keeps at her house. She buys him silver man’s toilet set and men’s clothing and sleeps with his dead body in one bed. To my mind, such Miss Emily’s devotion to males is hyperbolized. The author depicts the protagonist’s over obsession and in such a way hints that women by their nature feel adoration and idolatry towards a man. That is why Emily is surrounded only by males, including her servant Negro. Also, her suffering after the father’s and Homer’s death is a little bit exaggerated. She does not want to walk outside and see or communicate with other people.
However, Emily makes a lot of attempts in order to break free from the men’s reign. First of all, she has a male servant, who is responsible for all the house work, shopping and cooking that is stereotypically is a woman’s duty. Secondly, all the conversations with the men in the text are led by Emily rudely and with no respect. She refuses to answer the letters, come to visits or accept their coming and, when, finally, a deputation comes at their own request, she rejects all their claims. Ultimately, Miss Emily poisons Homer Barron as an attempt to secure her female position in the house. She feels the oppression from the outside and decides to stay in her own house with her own rules having no public obligations and duties.
Work Cited
Curry, Renée R. “Gender and Authorial Limitation in Faulkner's “A Rose for Emily.””. Mississippi Quarterly 47.3 (1994): 391-399. Print.
Faulkner, William. “A Rose for Emily”. 40 Short Stories. Ed. Beverly Lawn. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2013. Print.
