Multiple Choice for “A Rose for Emily”
1. Why do the townspeople assume Emily got married?
a. She and the man she was seeing went on a trip
b. She purchased a men’s toilet set.
c. She was seen riding in Homer’s car.
d. She had cousins visit from out of town.
2. At the end, why do the townspeople infer that Emily slept in the secret room after she had shut off
from the rest of the house?
a. All of her belongings were there.
b. There was fresh food on the table.
c. The room was clean and not at all dusty.
d. There was an indentation of a head in the pillow and a strand of her hair.
3. The simile “like two small pieces of coal pressed into a lump of dough” describes
a. the angry city officials.
b. Emily’s favorite painting.
c. a dessert with raisins.
d. Miss Emily’s face.
4. Why did Emily buy arsenic?
a. To kill rats
b. To kill her father.
c. To kill Homer Baron
d. To kill herself
5. The emotions a reader might be expected to feel toward Emily include —
a. amusement and gratitude
b. pity and horror
c. contempt and disappointment
d. approval and satisfaction
6. After her father dies, Emily —
a. moves to another town
b. sees many suitors
c. becomes a supporter of the arts
d. refuses to acknowledge his death
7. The strand of gray hair discovered at the end of the story implies that —
a. Emily has lain beside the skeleton
b. Homer Barron had gray hair
c. Homer Barron kept a lock of Emily’s hair
d. Emily was much older than Homer
8. To influence the development of her character, Emily’s father —
a. drives off suitors and prevents her from marrying
b. refuses to allow her to use the family name
c. forces her to work in the family business
d. forgets to leave anything to her in his will
9. The narrator generalizes about people by saying that “we knew that with nothing left, she would have
to cling to that which had robbed her, as people will.” Miss Emily’s behavior supports this
generalization because she —
a. refuses to pay her taxes
b. gains a lot of weight
c. goes out with Homer Barron
d. refuses to admit that her father is dead
10. In his speech, Faulkner says that “the human heart in conflict with itself” is the only thing worth
writing is about. “A Rose for Emily” portrays the human heart in conflict with itself by showing
that Emily —
a. felt both love and hate for Homer Barron
b. performed all her actions with an aristocratic sense of sureness
c. kept the same black servant throughout her life
d. was a Grierson through and through
11. The town described in the story is a(n) —
a. idealized view of Southern society
b. unnecessary backdrop to the action
c. distraction from more important things
d. crucial part of the story’s plot
Multiple Choice for “A Rose for Emily”
Answer Key
1. B
2. D
3. D
4. C
5. B
6. D
7. A
8. A
9. D
10. A
11. D