A Rose for Emily Group

Question:

cox0
cox0

In "A Rose for Emily," what does the story mean?

 

I need three examples

 

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Posted by cox0 on Wednesday March 4, 2009 at 9:13 AM and tagged with analysis, characters, plot, themes.

Answers:


  1. charcunning Teacher
    High School - 11th Grade

    eNotes Editor

    When people ask for the meaning of a story, they are oftentimes really looking for the theme of the story. The theme of the story is the universal message that the author wants you, the reader, to be able to take out of the story and apply to real life. In other words, this is the author's commentary on life and the human condition.  Theme is always expressed in a complete sentence, and stories, plays, novels, etc. oftentimes have more than one theme.

    So, in looking at "A Rose For Emily," there are at LEAST three areas around which you could create a theme, or as you put it, the meaning.

    First, look at what Faulkner is trying to say about people who are "stuck in the past" or more a part of the past than of the future. What happened to Ms. Emily as a result of her being almost TOO grounded in her family's past?

    Second, inspect what Faulkner is saying about love and relationships. How does Emily react and how SHOULD Emily have reacted?

    Lastly, what is Faulkner saying about father-daughter relationships? There is so much dysfunction in the relationship between Ms. Emily and her father, and it is easily discerned that this dysfunction leads to Ms. Emily's behavior.

    For each topic, craft a sentence which states what message Faulkner is disseminating to his readers.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/rose-emily/themes

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    Posted by charcunning on Friday July 3, 2009 at 6:47 AM