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A Rose for EmilyI. Background InformationAbout the Author William Faulkner (Sep 25th,1897Jul 6th,1962) was an American writer of novels, short stories, poetry and occasional screenplays. When we talk about William Faulkners life, the most important fact is that he was born and bred in the American South and lived there almost all his life. The majority of his works are based in his native state of Mississippi. Faulkner is considered one of the most important writers of the Southern literature of the United States, along with Mark Twain, Flannery OConnor, Eudora Welty, Thomas Wolfe, and Tennessee Williams. Though his work was published as early as 1919, and largely during the 1920s and 1930s, Faulkner was relatively unknown until receiving the 1950 Nobel Prize in Literature. The younger Faulkner was greatly influenced by the history of his family and the region in which he lived. Mississippi marked his sense of humor, his sense of the tragic position of Black and White Americans, his characterization of Southern characters, and his timeless themes. The boy grew up listening to all sorts of stories about his great-grandfather and other people in his hometown. The stories the Negro nanny told him and the gossip he heard from the townspeople resting and chatting on the small downtown square provided Faulkner with an oral tradition of storytelling as an important part of his education. During WWI Faulkner served with the Royal Canadian Air Force. After the armistice(休战) in 1918 he returned to Oxford, a small town in Mississippi, and for some time he led a life in a rather listless way. He attended the University of Mississippi but left the university within a year; he tried his hand at poetry but without success; he went north to the cultural metropolitan city of New York, but was driven back home soon by loneliness. He became a postmaster, but in less than three years he resigned from this post. All this time, he had been reading, first whatever interested him, and later, the great poets and novelists. In New York, Faulkner met Sherwood Anderson, a famous writer, and then when he traveled to New Orleans in 1925 he gained entry into this artistic center through Anderson. Inspired by Anderson, Faulkner began to write novels. Faulkner wrote 19 novels and nearly a hundred short stories. The setting of 15 novels and the majority of the short fiction is the American South. In them the author tells stories about people from a small region in Mississippi, a fictional place the author calls Yoknapatawpha Country. He even drew a map of the place and gave specific details about the population there. His major works include novels The Sound and The Fury (1929), As I Lay Dying (1930), Light in August (1932), and Absalom, Absalom! (1936). Because the setting of most of his works is the American South, he is regarded as a regional writer. But the word “regional” is misleading because Faulkner deals with some of the major universal themes in literature so profoundly that he is read and recognized nationally and internationally. As far as writing techniques are concerned, Faulkner is among the greatest experimentalists of the 20th century novel. His effective use of the stream of consciousness, multiple points of view, symbolism and imagery, place him among the rank of the greatest modern writers along with James Joyce and Virginia Woolf. In 1950 he received the Noble Prize for Literature.About A Rose for Emily It is a short story by American author William Faulkner first published in the April 30, 1931 issue of Forum. This story takes place in Faulkners fictional city, Jefferson, Mississippi in the fictional county of Yoknapatawpha County. It was Faulkners first short story published in a national magazine. Although it is one of his most frequently anthologized(收入选集的) short stories and is widely used in the American classroom, Chinese students may find it difficult to understand and appreciate. Some of them may think it is a bizarre story about an old eccentric lady in an American Southern town. Its true that the setting of the story is the American South. Yet, the theme of the story is universal, transcending the boundaries of time and space, like many other works of literature, this short story tells about love, death, honor, pride, change, and loss. In “A Rose for Emily” we can see how the author tells a good story skillfully, how he creates an atmosphere needed for the storytelling, how he keeps the suspense and unfolds the conflict bit by bit, and how he digs deep into the social world of his character. This story is a rich and modern 20th century literary text. Those who are not so familiar with modern American literature may encounter some obstacles in reading this story: vague references, ambiguities, symbolism, experimental point of view, jumbled time sequences, avoidance of clear transitions, withholding of vital information, etc. By exploiting those “tricks”, Faulkner hopes to invite us readers to participate in the process of seeking the truths of reading the story. Its like working at a puzzle: when we start to figure it out, it will become more and more interesting. Task1: How do you understand the title? Task2: Make a summary of the chronology of events in the short story. Task3: Whats the main idea of each section? Task4: How many characters in the story? What are their characteristics respectively?TASK II. Text Analysis1. Title Faulkner explained the reason for his choice of the title as: The title was an allegorical(比喻的，寓意的) title; the meaning was, here was a woman who has had a tragedy, an irrevocable(不可改变的) 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. The meaning of the title is ambiguous, capable of various interpretations. A rose is a clich(陈词滥调), symbolizing love and a pledge(保证) of faithfulness. From the story, we can see Miss Emily was denied love. So, in this sense, the title has an ironic meaning. A rose for sb can also mean a kind of memorial, an offering, in memory of sb. 2. Chronology of EventsEmilys father dies.Col.Sartoris pays Emilys taxes.Col.Sartoris dies.Homer arrivers.Emily buys arsenic.Homer disappears.Aldermen try to collect taxes.Smell appears.Emily dies.1234567893. Analysis of Each Section The jumbled chronology is structured like a “gossip story”. Each section is designed for the reader to make the judgment of Emily.Section I People talk about how Emily hasnt paid her taxes. She has been sheltered her whole life by her dad. Colonel Sartoris (mayor) knew he wouldnt get taxes from her. He creates a story why she doesnt pay. She believes the story and buys into it.Section II A strange smell emits from Emilys house. Men have to sneak around her house to spread lime to cover smell.Section III The first appearance of Homer Barron. Townspeople react-women gossiping. Emily is seen buying arsenic. Section IV Emilys cousins arrive to prepare her for marriage. Emily buys mens clothing and toiletries. This is the last time anyone sees Homer. Emily dies.Section V Back to present time. Emily is dead. The townspeople open her bedroom door that has been shut for over 30 years. Their discovery creates shudders(颤栗) of horror and disgust. The final judgment/response from the reader is laid out.4. Character List Emily Grierson Homer Barron Mr. Grierson Colonel Sartoris Judge Stevens Tobe Emily Grierson - The main character in the story. An eccentric recluse, Emily is a mysterious figure who changes from a vibrant and hopeful young girl to a cloistered and secretive old woman. Devastated and alone after her fathers death, she is an object of pity for the townspeople. After a life of having potential suitors rejected by her father, she spends time after his death with a newcomer, Homer Barron, although the chances of his marrying her decrease as the years pass. She ultimately poisons Homer and seals his corpse into an upstairs room. The story starts at her death, then loops back around and tells you her life. Refuses to accept changes. Homer Barron - A foreman from the North. Homer is a large man with a dark complexion, a booming voice, and light-colored eyes. A gruff and demanding boss, he wins many admirers in Jefferson because of his gregarious(爱交际的) nature and good sense of humor. He develops an interest in Emily and takes her for Sunday drives in a yellow-wheeled buggy. Despite his attributes, the townspeople view him as a poor, if not scandalous, choice for a mate. He disappears in Emilys house and decomposes(腐烂) in an attic bedroom after she poisons him. Mr. Grierson - Emilys father. Mr. Grierson is a controlling, looming presence even in death, and the community clearly sees his lasting influence over Emily. He deliberately thwarts(阻止) Emilys attempts to find a husband in order to keep her under his control. We get glimpses of him in the story: in the crayon portrait kept on the gilt-edged easel in the parlor, and silhouetted(出现轮廓) in the doorway, horsewhip in hand, having chased off another of his daughters suitors. After his death, Emily will not let the townspeople take his dead body from her home for three days. Possessive(占有欲强的) and domineering(专制的). Colonel Sartoris - A former mayor of Jefferson. He absolves(赦免) Emily of any tax burden after the death of her father, which later causes consternation(惊骇) to succeeding generations of town leaders. Judge Stevens - A mayor of Jefferson. Eighty years old, he attempts to delicately handle the complaints about the smell emanating from the Grierson property. To be respectful of Emilys pride and former position in the community, he and the aldermen decide to sprinkle lime on the property in the middle of the night. Tobe - Emilys servant. His voice supposedly rusty from lack of use, is the only lifeline Emily has to the outside world and he cares for her and tends to her needs. After her death, he walks out the back door and never returns. appears to have covered Emilys secret5. Conflicts Miss Emily vs. her father Miss Emily vs. Homer Miss Emily vs. herself Miss Emily vs. town Emily vs. her Father Keeps her single chases her suitors Resolution: he dies, leaving her alone. Miss Emily vs. Homer Emily is southern aristocracy, desperate for marriage. Homer is northern, day laborer, not marrying kind. Resolution: she kills him and keeps his body. Emily vs. Herself Maintain status or marry Takes a lover vs. religion and tradition Murders what she loves “Loving” Homer after death was her atonement (赎罪，弥补). Emily vs. Town Taxes What is acceptable (smell, Homer) Gossip Is there resolution? 6. Old Southern Setting What makes this uniquely southern? Influence of traditions Negro servant Role of clergy/relatives/women Class considerations Gothic elements: Old house, mysterious activities, smell, strange servant, closed rooms, dust, darkness, decay What was the Old South Like? Before the Civil War, Southern society was composed of landed gentry(上流社会人士), merchants, tenant(佃户) farmers, and slaves. The aristocratic men of this period had an unspoken code of chivalry, and women were the innocent, pure guardians of morality. However, post-Civil War society in the South was radically different. At one time, the Grierson home was in one of the finest neighborhoods in Jefferson; by the time of Emilys death, it was one of the most run-down. The generation that follows is not swayed by the old Southern code of honor. Emilys china-painting lessons also show the change in Southern society. Her pupils are the daughters and granddaughters of Colonel Sartoris contemporaries. However, the narrator notes that “the painting pupils grew up and fell away and did not send their children to her with boxes of color and tedious brushes and pictures cut from the ladies magazines.” Finally, Emilys dark secret serves as a metaphor for the general decadence of the Old South.7. Style Long, complicated sentences. (See S1)-interruptions-big, bookish words (See S2) Lots of description. (See S6) Flashbacks. (See S3) Not much dialog.(The way the author tells the story.)Extended Reading To see for the first time, Emily is an odd person: all her behaviors are not so intelligible in the view of persons nowadays, staying indoors, lacking of friends in life, the unusual talk and attitude. The last and the most, she loves a person but kills him in order to achieve the goal of occupying him and being together with him forever. To understand how to mould the figure cant be broken away from the era background of personages. The story takes place when the Civil War is over. The impact of the northern civilization makes it not be legal to hold slaves any more. The foundation that economy depends on for existence at the plantation has been out of existence. Plantation economy moves towards collapsing. In the face of the new economic mode of the North and culture values, some people fight stubbornly with ones back to the wall. Emily is undoubtedly the models of these declining aristocrats. Southern represents decline, while northern represents rise. Between the decline and rise, there are some people who are bearing the misfortune due to defending tenaciously(固执地) after all. The background of the contradiction between north and south, when it is reflected in a persons history, is namely the tragedies of love and life. Emily was born in that stratum(社会阶层) of that era, thus she was a guardian of that stratum naturally. If not, she had no way to make a live. What she learned is what young ladies in rich families learn for fun. She refused to pay taxes, and resisted to change, defending tenaciously the large house and antiquated life style. But she has also received some benefits from the past, such as honorable surname, peoples respect from it, and some privileged treatment left over. While at the same time, she is a victim. She is besieged(围攻) by peoples comments from common customs, by the suppression of her father who is the authority symbol, during the years when a nave little girl grows up, she has no freedom, no love. Emilys mother is hardly mentioned in the novel. Mother is a role which symbolizes softness and warmness. It seemed that such colors never appear in her life. It lets her lack love with fathers harsh and injunctive communication in life, lack training for the expression and feeling of love. It results in abnormal love finally. She has ever resisted too. She struggles in the contradiction and twists her heart finally. The only love by her, I think is from that old slave. The old slave stands fast at the southerners life style with her, giving her defends and service closely. A rose, such a gentle bright love flower, versus Emily, who is lack of love and longing for love while who does not know how to love, it is a contradiction itself. This contradiction symbolizes the contradiction on southerners, who want to resist the oppression of the past, while cannot break away from dependence of the past.III. Detailed Analysis of the Text1. But garages and cotton ginseven the august names of that neighborhoodan eyesore among eyesores. (Para. 2) inspiring awe and reverence; imposing and magnificent; worthy of respect because of age and dignity, high position, etc.The street used to house only the best families. Then great changes took place: garages and cotton gins were established on the street and their existence wiped out the aristocratic traces in that neighborhood. 2. And now Miss Emily had gone to join the representatives of those august names the battle of Jefferson. (Para. 2) 参考译文：不过，现在艾米丽小姐也加入到那些名门望族代表的行列中了。 他们在令人沉思的雪松陪伴下长眠于公墓，他们的墓碑周围埋葬着一排排南北战争中在杰弗逊战场上阵亡的南军和北军的无名战士。3. Not that Miss Emily would have accepted charity. (Para. 3) It would not be true to say that Miss Emily would have accepted charity.
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