The Significance of the rose in A Rose for Emily by William Faulkner

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Rich in symbolism, "A Rose for Emily," written by William Faulkner in 1931, demonstrates Emily, Homer, and the Townspeople's similarities through the use of a rose as the main metaphor, however, as the story develops, one realizes that, in fact, this metaphor's purpose reveals their differences. This is fitting because Emily appears to be moral and respectable people on the surface; however, by delving deeper into the short story one uncovers her true nature, a miserable, unfriendly, and insane person. Her path coincides with Homer's as their paths both strike a remarkable resemblance to that of a rose's. Best described as immortal, the townspeople are shown as being pretty from far but far from pretty.

From afar, Faulkner chooses the rose to represent Emily because she appears reserved and would never harm anything or anyone. One can see Emily's reclusive and subdued persona when the tax collectors come to her house, "She did not ask them to sit.

She just stood in the door and listened quietly until the spokesman came to a stumbling halt" (426). Although she seemed peaceful, one can ascertain never to judge a book by its cover.

Emily is truly traumatized by her father's death and would not accept the fact that her father has left her permanently for another few days and due to that mental disparity, she devises a way to keep Homer with her permanently, even though he would not be alive. Such as a rose has thorns when examined closely, so Emily displays this same attribute in her own life. When people came to get her father, she said to them, "Miss Emily met them at the door, dressed as usual and with no trace of grief on her face. She told them that her father was not dead" (428).