A Rose for Emily

Initially my reaction to A Rose for Emily lacked depth. My opinion was the story was simply a tale of an of an elderly woman who spent her most of her years in her home, secluded from her neighbors, and potential loved ones. Aside from the effective imagery, A Rose for Emily just didn't accomplish to catch my interest. Although, once I began to look at the story more closely, through the help of the worksheet and classmates, I started to notice a wide variety of symbolism in the story. In particular the words "dust" and "rose" became very much connected to Emily herself, and the house as well. Along with noticing the symbolism, I realized the order of events, and the point of view served to not only make the story engaging throughout, but also provided different perspectives. I also gained an appreciation for the values of the characters and how they affected themselves, the towns folk, and the events in the story itself. All together the class discussion really helped be open my eyes to the depth of the story, and without the worksheet I would still be blind to most of the symbolism.