A Rose For Emily

Essay by PaperNerd ContributorHigh School, 12th grade September 2001

download word file, 3 pages 0.0

Downloaded 17 times

A Rose For Emily In William Faulkner's "A Rose For Emily," the main character, also playing the part of the narrator, is referred to as "our whole town"(140). This main character only consists of people who do not actively participate in the plot of the story. They just receive and convey information about important people and events. This town also exhibits various humanistic qualities such as making assumptions, speculations, and hypotheticals.

There is no definite answer as to how information is passed on from the direct participants in Miss Emily's affairs to the narrators of the story. One direct reference to the town acquiring new information is the phrase "it got about"(143). This only signifies that the whole town is informed at one time, just the same as one person telling another. Another way the town received information was when they "sat back to watch developments" and "learned" about the goings on of Miss Emily (145).

There are certain elements of humanism exhibited by the town that portray it as a single mind with many thoughts and moods. One example of this is the brief mention of the funeral of Miss Emily and the reason the townsfolk attended. One reason, specific to the men of the town, was to show "respectful affection for a fallen monument"(140). The other reason, specific to the women of the town, was "out of curiosity to see the inside of her house"(140). This would be identical to one person having a superficial motive and yet simultaneously having a darker secret motive. The town also has its various motives for everything else it is involved in.

These thoughts of the town can and do change based upon new information or a verification of old information. The literary category that fits this set of characteristics is...