A Rose for Emily

Emaily Frierson was not a common traditional house wife fromt he South. Emily was not traditional by far. Emily was a strong women who most respected in her town. there were many menn who lived with her. Most people looked at her as a independent women. she was brought up with well manners. Emily's house was not like any other southerners house. The African americans servants cooked and shopped for her. The smell from her house was gut wrenching. the town complained about it quit often. Emily normally liked to be alone. She didn't accept anything from anyone not even from her own family. The town stated. " We were sure they were married". ( Emily and Homer Barron). " A Rose for Emily" wouldn't be considered a traditinal in these days and time.

Symbol of the South?

There are many different ways to view Miss Emily Grierson. She was a victim of the Old South for several reasons, but the number one reason is the way she was brought up by her father. He was the only man she knew how to love because that was the way he wanted it. I believe Miss Emily’s father is the reason she is the independent woman the town knows her as, but the fact that she was not able to let go of her father, or Homer after she killed him, gives the impression she may only have been independent to an extent. She lived in a home by herself with a servant to do her chores and cleaning for her. I disagree with the declaration of Miss Emily being a symbol of the South on the accounts of her not having the traditional ways of women in the South in that time period. Miss Emily did not have the tidy, up kept household that a traditional woman was expected to have. She also did not have the manners of a traditional Southern woman. After sending a letter to Miss Emily in regards to her not paying taxes, the city authorities received no response and had to go to her house. She retorted sternly with, “I have no taxes in Jefferson. Colonel Sartoris explained it to me. Perhaps one of you can gain access to the city records and satisfy yourselves.” (210) Speaking to an authoritative figure this way, let alone a female to a male, in this time period was almost unheard of. Overall, Miss Emily was not comparable to many women of the South in that time period.

So what's this I hear about a rose for Emily?

Told through the eyes of what's understood to be the townsfolk, "A Rose for Emily" can be considered basically a collection of gossip stories accumulated through different periods of Emily's life. In the first paragraph Faulkner writes, "...our whole town went to her funeral: the men...for a fallen monument, the women...to see the inside of her house..." Emily was framed up and forced by the people of her town to be the picturesque symbol of the "Old South." In a way it was as if she was born into this life that was already laid out in front of her step by step; through the eyes of the townsfolk that is. In paragraph 25 Faulkner voices through the women of the town, "So when she got to be thirty and was still single, we were not pleased exactly." Emily refused to lead the life her local society so strongly thought she ought to have. She secluded to a private life in her home to get away from her judgmental neighbors. Consequently too long of a secluded life destroyed her social skills and slowly sent her into a quiet psychotic bliss. She was unable to keep a stable relationship and when it seemed as though the love of her life was going to leave her she, in her state of psychosis, poisoned him and preserved his body to spend with her night after night :-)

Insane or Unjust

Teachers should let their students interpret ‘The Yellow Wallpaper’ by Gilman anyway they see best fit. It takes away their motion of thought when you limit the perspectives someone can have when reading the story. At the end the character has several ghost like qualities involving creeping and the way she responds by whispering in a very soft tone to her husband and his supposed reaction to her is unnoticed like she isn’t even saying anything as it is. (Paragraph 255-267). Feminists view points in the story included wanting to write and visit family members (Paragraphs76-77, 112), although that doesn’t last for very long and she ends up doing as John or Jane say. When putting the ideas of a feminist compatible with a gothic ghost story does not really fit what is going on in the story. At very short times during the story does it ever present the possibility of being either but not enough evidence of one gives the story away for being feminist or gothic. The only way the two can be compatible is by sharing moments in the story with which they could only share a common ground. Other then that the feministic and gothic view cannot be comparable.

The Story of an Hour

Kate Chopin did a great job with writing "The Story of An Hour", even though the story was relatively short, she was able to use imagery sucessfully to get her point across. I believe the story rejects the "postures of femininity", the reasoning behind my statement is that Mrs.Mallard is relieved to find out that her husband has died. In paragraph ten " she said it over and over under her breath:"Free,free,free". It's as if a big burden has been lifted off of her. As she was standing by the window she say the clouds open up and blue skies appearing. Normal people who are in a commited and loving relationship won't react like that if there spouse died. One could even argue that she may have been trying to get a divorce but back in 1894 women didn't have rights like they do today, so by her passing away she was able to be out of the marraige.

Any Thing but Tradition

Emily Grierson was anything but traditional. The traditional woman would have been one who kept a neat home, had perfect manners, and passed traditions down through generations. Emily did not run her home as a traditional woman in the south would have. She had her Negro servant who did all of the cooking and also shopping for Emily. The house was always described in a state of mess throughout the story as well. There was also the smell that came from the house that the town’s people complained about continuously. If Emily was a traditional woman she would have wanted to present herself in a manner that was accepted and not offensive, such as the smell. The way in which Emily treated other people directly is not in the typical thinking of traditional women. She seems to be a woman who is content to by alone, and not wanting to accept any handouts from others. When she needed help she was not willing to even reach out to her own family for assistance. Emily also was not able to pass down any of her beliefs or traditions to any of her own. Even though there was much hope in the relationship between Emily and Homer Barron. As the town’s people stated, “…we were sure that they were to be married” (213). Throughout the information that we received from the short story of “A Rose for Emily” there were many things that would not be considered as traditional for women of the time.

Story of a Wronged Woman

Kate Chopin was writing about wronged womanhood in "Story of an Hour." It is the story of a woman who has no rights, and is destined for a lifetime of emotional suffering and longing for freedom. It is quite obvious that she does not find happiness in her marriage, by quotes such as, "And yet she had loved him - sometimes. Often she had not" (198). The author illustrates women's lifestyles back then when she writes, "There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself" (198). This makes me believe Mrs. Mallard's marriage was pre-arranged, giving her no say in who she spends her life with, and giving her no chance at true love. She didn't get to fulfill any life long dreams, and spent her days catering to her husband. "It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long" (199). This also gives the idea that the woman in the story is not able to escape this unhappy marriage. She did not have the legal rights to divorce him, and she had no way out.


We can also see how the author, Kate Chopin, rejects the postures of femininity in the way that Mrs. Mallard longed for freedom. It was unlike most women to be as happy or relieved as she was to hear of her husband's passing, which is illustrated in the quote, "She did not hear the story as many women have heard the same, with a paralyzed inability to accept its significance" (197). She whispers the words, "Free, free, free" (198). She is finding more of a positive outlook in her husband's death than anything.


"But she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely. And she opened and spread her arms out to them in welcome" (198). We share, with this woman, an hour of hope and a glimpse of what could be her future of happiness...the kind of happiness that every woman deserves.

Story of an Hour

Although short, "Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin portrayed a very well-described message to the readers about just how opressed the women of that particular era actually were, well, after a few times of reading it. Once the gears started turning, and after reading the information regarding the setting of the story, the message sent was quite blunt; women were opressed during this era, and Mrs. Mallard finally got her breath of fresh air.

Something hit her while looking out that window in paragraph 5. As she looked out upon the scenery, somber and depressed, she began to notice that the shackles of marriage were unlocked from her; she was no longer held down by a more significant figure. Of Course Mr. Mallard wasn't abusive or anything of that nature, but there was such a hierarchy during this time, and since Mr. Mallard was gone, she could live life as she truly wanted. An excerpt from paragraph 14, which states "There would be no one to live for these coming years; she would live for herself." (Chopin, 1894) emphasises this point.

There is much imagery that could be noticed within paragraph 5 that relates to her situation. She is looking out whe window and catching every detail, as well as noticing just how much there is out there. The symbolism of the scenic view out the window also relates to her situation; she's there, to witness the freedom of life, with no opression or boundaries that accompany the hierarchy of men. Of course she was still saddened by the trajedy, but no human is apt to sacrifice freedom for happiness, in some ways, freedom and happiness are conjoined.

The south was the victim

Question number eight of Reading and Reacting for "A Rose for Emily" suggests that Emily was a victim of the south. I couldn't disagree more. Over and over, Emily bucks the traditions of the south and those around her are forced to cope with her rogue personality. When the town was being set up for mail delivery, it would seem a source of pride to hang your new mailbox and anxiously await your first piece of important mail. To the contrary, Emily refuses to let the town hang a mailbox or numbers by her door (214). With all the pride that would accompany having a nice house, surely having an odor emanating from it would be taken care of immediately. Emily's stubbornness is so well known that the townsmen fear bringing this to her attention. Instead they take care of the problem themselves (211). Again Emily is anything but a southern belle.
Having a proper burial for ones kin would surely be tradition in the south. It would be an opportunity to bring up all of the deceased great accomplishments, even if there weren't any. This would have been a chance for Emily and her fathers name to be elevated. Again, Emily would have no part of it. Another tradition of the south was to marry within ones class and maintain "nobless oblige" (212). Emily's choice to date Homer, a day laborer was showing she was one to do her own thing and not worry about what society thought about her.
Surely a woman of this time knew to respect a man, especially a professional. Not Emily, as can be seen by how she treats the druggist; refusing to answer his question even though it was the "law"(213). Last but not least is the apparent disregard she showed for the minister. Such disregard that "he refused to go back again" (213).
Emily, over and over, refused to followed the southern traditions laid down by society before her. She made the south a victim of her.

Lack Of Socialization?

In the story, "A Rose for Emily", it is difficult to tell if Miss Emily Grierson is a victim of chivalry, formal manners, and tradition because she did not do a lot of talking to other people. She did not fully show weather she had all these characteristics, but from some of the context it seems like she did not. When Miss Emily was arguing with the Mayor of Jefferson, she was fairly rude about it. Someone with formal manners would have just gave in and paid the taxes that they owed. She was rude to the druggist when he tried to offer a different poison and she did not answer when he told her that they are required to find out what it will be used for. Although Miss Emily did not have formal memories, she kept to the traditions. She refused to pay the taxes because her taxes were remitted some time before, so she thought it should stay that way. If Miss Emily had been more social than she was, it would have showed that she had all these qualities. Miss Emily probably wasn't trying to be rude, she just did not have the social experience that the other people of that time had.

Her Own Traditions - A Rose for Emily

Emily Grierson was not your average traditional house wife from the south. As a matter of fact she was nothing near traditional. Emily was a strong southern woman who many respected in her town, especially the men who lived there. She was known to be very independent and didn't back down from no one not even the Board of Aldermen. Its quoted in the beginning of passage 7, "she didnt even ask them to sit". That passage was referring to the Board of Aldermen which clearly showed what little respect she had for men. Emily had her own traditions, which meant she did things her own way and gave no explaination to no one. In passage 41, the druggiest is asking her to explain what she needs arsenic for? Its quoted in passage 42, "Miss Emily just stared at him, her head titled back in order to look him eye for eye, until he looked away and went adn got the arsenic and wrapped it up". Emily was very intimidating and feared, thats why she was nothing like the other women in her town. Because back in those days women had no voice and it was clear that Emily did. Emily always kept to herself and always gave people something to talk about. Emily ironically was a lot like her father, very dominant and well respected and was always driving people away. Its stated in passage 28 that Emily's father had driven all the men in Emily's life away. In the story A Rose for Emily, Emily runs nearly a lot of men and women away just like her father.

The old south and Emily Grierson

~ Emily Grierson really isnt a symbol of the south. She really didn't go with tradition of the house wife who cooks, cleans and caters to their husband. When growing up her father was always shooing the guys that she showed any interest in. She was never really showed how to be respectful to men. She eventualy got set in her own ways and started her own "traditions." She stayed in her own little world and kept to herself. Everyone who was of the old south traditions new she was different and tried to find out all her secrets. The story was not a very good example of someone of the south.

Feminist vs. Ghostly

"The Yellow Wallpaper" is no doubt a feminist story, although it does seem to fall into a ghostly story as well.
We know the narrator is sick with postpartum depression throughout the story. John, the narrator's husband,as a physician brings her away in order to cure her. "Personally, I believe that congenial work, with excitement and change, would to me good" the narrator explains (Gilman 394). Instead, John locks her up in a nursery and orders her to rest. He is doing what seems like to be the best thing for her, but he is not really trying to understand his wife's needs. Taking into consideration the time period, we know that men had much more power than women. John shows us his power in paragraph 133 when he refers to his wife as a "little girl".
We find throughout the story that this "cure" is not working so well for our narrator, with the vulgar descriptions of the wallpaper and such. The wallpaper seems to have taken the narrator's identity at the end of the story, creating a ghostly description of herself; "I always lock the door when I creep by daylight" (Gilman 403). Creeping is an activity usually taken on by a ghost.
In conclusion, the lack of freedom given to the narrator by her husband John, leads to a ghostly description of her character.

The Story of An Hour

In the Story of an Hour, author Kate Chopin may lead a person to believe that Kate used her literature as a way of showing wronged womanhood in the late 19th century. Everyone knows that women did not have the same rights as men did in the late 18th century and into the 19th century. Some women were not given the choice of whom they are to marry. In Story of an Hour Mrs. Mallard was much younger than Mr. Mallard was, and that may lead a person to believe that their marriage could have be arranged. It’s quoted at the beginning of the 8th paragraph that Mrs. Mallard- “She is young, with a fair, calm face, whose lines bespoke repression and even a certain strength”. Another passage from the story where Mrs. Mallard led me to believe that this may have been an arranged marriage is when she is quoted saying “Free, free, free”. Mrs. Mallard was not mistreated in her marriage to Mr. Mallard she just wanted something more and to know what else was out there in the world. Little quotes by Mrs. Mallard throughout the story like- “The notes of a distant song”, “whose eyes were fixed away off yonder”, “she would live for herself” made me believe that she wanted more out of her life. Quotes like the previous ones mentioned led me to believe that the author Kate Chopin used social justice and inequalities in her literature.

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A Rose For Emily

Pondering the question of Miss Emily being a symbol of the old south one may conclude in some aspects she was. For instance it's very apparent in the story how much influance a male figure who happens to be her father has over her life, mainly concerning "all the young men her farther had drivin away" It is possible that Emily truly admired some of the young men, but due to the fact it was considerd improper at that time to disagree with a man her hands were tied. It was common pratice for a husband or father to be in charge of making desicions for the women and it was not considerd an act of oppression thats just the way things were at the time.

On the other hand Emily was somewhat of a paradox concerning the virtuous southern women. Emily's periodic interactions with other men was contracdictory to the image of the traditional southern belle, for example when representatives of the aldermen came calling she was not at all hospitable or respectful, this certaintly was not a symbol of southern womenhood. upon them entering to her home she did not offer a seat to them. And when the authorities politely inquried about her back taxes stating "Miss Emily. Didn't you get a notice from the sheriff signed by him?" Emily curtly replied "I received a paper yes perhaps he considers himself the sheriff I have no taxes in Jefferson". Also there is the matter of the scandalous affair she carried on with a laborer without the benifit of marriage, this was considered taboo behavior. Emily did what she felt without really caring what people thought of her.In Essence Emily was a victim of traditional southern values for one she was never allowed the luxury of choosing her own mate and she was forced to let her father make important decisions for her that directly effected her existance.

The Storm- Insecure Relationship

Obviously the relationship between Calixta and Bobinot was not totally stable. The reader is bound to figure this out when Alcee was invited into the family's house by Calixta without her even thinking about Bobinot's thoughts on the situation. She let him in because they used to be lovers in the past, and she obviously knew that her husband was not coming home soon because of the storm. Calixta obviously had her husband of the current time on her mind when she quoted- "I got enough to do! An' there's Bobinot with Bibi out in that storm- if he only didn't left Friedheimer's!" That quote is saying that she hopes that her husband does not leave the store and think about coming home because she has other plans to do during the storm that does not involve her husband that obviously does not fulfill her needs. The reader knows that Calixta and her old lover still have feelings for each other as the sleep with each other during the storm and re ignite old feelings they had. This is showing that Calixta just wants to have that feeling of love again, so maybe Bobinot is not showing enough love; as in the beginning of the story they say that he is a simple minded man. Now after the storm is gone and Bobinot and Bibi come back home the weird part is, is that Calixta acts extremely happy, like because of the night spent with her old lover changed her into a different person. She plays it off as nothing happened, knowing that her family will have no idea. The ending of the story bothered me very much because the reader knows that the simple minded husband that went out of his way to get his wife shrimp because he knows she loves it, will never know that his wife has had an affair and she will never tell.

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Spring 2010

Welcome to a new term of 1102! The posts below are from former students. Check them out if you would like.