Human Conflict
A Rose for Emily
Dr. Peih-ying Lu
Oct 22, 2012
At an Interview, Faulkner said:
• “The title] was an allegorical title; the
meaning was, here was a woman who had
had a tragedy, an irrevocable tragedy and
nothing could be done about it, and I pitied
her and this was a salute…to a woman
you would hand a rose.”
• Introducción a la narrativa breve de William Faulkner, p. 63
By Cristina Blanco Outón
Story Line
 Please write down the chronological story
line
Writing Style
• FLASHBACK and FORESHADOWING
are two often used literary devices that
utilize time in order to produce a desired
effect. Flashbacks are used to present
actions that occur before the beginning of
a story, foreshadowing creates
expectation for action that has not yet
happened. Faulkner uses both devices in
“A Rose for Emily.”
A Rose for Emily
• Characters
• Plots
• Conflicts
Emily
• Refuses to accept changes
Examples:
1. refused to accept the fact that her father
is dead
And…
2.
3.
Emily’s character
a. Why does Miss Emily deny her father’s
death?
b. What void in her life is filled by Homer?
c. Why does she order the monogrammed
toilet set for Homer?
d. Why does she kill Homer?
e. Why does she keep Homer’s body?
f. Why does she become a recluse?
Why did Miss Emily kill Homer Barron?
• Barron had deserted her.
• Barron refused to marry her.
• She feared that Barron would not remain
faithful to her after their marriage
• She was insane.
• He wanted to blackmail her.
• He wanted to take her to the North.
• Characterize Emily's father and Homer.
Also, please discuss if Emily's father
would have approved of Homer?
Emily’s father
• Possessive and domineering
Example:
Drive away all the young men
張愛玲： 怨女
• 「對張愛玪而言，銀娣的悲劇應不在於她接受命運的擺弄
，而在於她始終企圖超越她所受的束縛。」
【美國哈佛大學講座教授】王德威
• Textual evidence: “ we thought of them as
a tableau, Miss Emily a slender figure in
white in the background…the two of them
by the backflung door.” (P197)
Homer
Characteristics?
Why is he not a marrying type?
Conflict
Man vs. Man; Man vs. Himself;
Man vs. Nature; Man vs. Society;
Man vs. Supernatural
-Miss Emily vs. her father
-Miss Emily vs. herself
-Miss Emily vs. Homer
-Miss Emily vs. townspeople/cousins
And……?
Comparison of the Old and the
New generation
Old South
New South
Emily’s father
Homer
Colonel Sartoris
Aldermen
Judge Stevens
Young man who wants
to confront Miss Emily
about the smell
Tobe
• The old generation:
- embody the values of the Old South
- feel a paternalistic responsibility for
Miss Emily
• The new generation:
- more businesslike
- the young man’s suggestion
- “with more modern ideas”
Questions
• Please develop the following lists:
a. List differences between the older and
younger generations.
b. List examples of the decay in Miss
Emily’s house.
c. List the changes that have occurred in
Miss Emily’s neighborhood.
d. List examples of Miss Emily’s refusal to
accept change.
SYMBOL
(An object that suggests more than its literal meaning.
An object that points or hints at deeper meaning.
Always look at titles, inanimate objects, names,
colors, and locales.)
•The rose color?
•The title?
•The toiletry items?
•The pocket watch?
•The dust?