A Rose for Emily

Miss Emily killed Homer Barron in "A Rose For Emily" because she feared abandonment and rejection. She had convinced herself that Homer would propose marriage, and when he did not, she reacted out of...

The smell referred to in section II of "A Rose for Emily" was caused by Homer's rotting corpse, not Emily's father. The authorities had already removed and buried her father's body earlier in the...

That is an interesting idea to speculate about, but given that Faulkner has no problem telling us that Tobe is black, it is highly unlikely that Homer would be so also without Faulkner's saying...

The foreshadowing of Homer Baron's discovery in "A Rose for Emily" includes the terrible smell coming from Emily's property, which the townspeople attribute to different sources but never question...

Homer Barron's sexual orientation is implied to be homosexual. The townspeople speculate about his relationship with men, suggesting he is not interested in marrying Emily. However, it is never...

As the narrator foreshadows throughout William Faulkner’s short story, the townspeople of Jefferson discover what they expected to in the closed-up portion of Miss Emily Grierson’s home. The...

Emily's attachment to Homer Barron and her clinging to his corpse in "A Rose for Emily" illustrate her extreme fear of abandonment and inability to cope with loss. Her actions reflect her desperate...

The townspeople of Jefferson consider Miss Emily Grierson's relationship with Homer Barron a disgrace because she is courting someone well below her social status. Miss Emily hails from a...

The dead body is that of Homer Baron, the fiance, that the townspeople thought had abandoned Miss Emily. She poisoned him with the arsenic that she bought from the pharmacist, and then she kept his...

The author doesn't give names of the two cousins.  He simply says they were relations from Alabama.  The minister's wife wrote to Miss Emily's family because Miss Emily was alone, and she...

The narrator of Faulkner’s "A Rose for Emily" represents the townspeople and what they knew/suspected about both Emily Grierson and the fate of Homer Barron. The narrator tells the reader of three...

The conflicts in "A Rose for Emily" are deeply tied to cultural, setting, and regional tensions. Emily Grierson's struggle against societal expectations and her resistance to change reflect the...

Your question includes a number of elements that cannot be answered by reference to the story, but I will try to answer those elements that Faulkner discusses. Miss Emily is identified in the story...

Before I answer your question, be aware that enotes editors are limited in the length of our response. The goal in the q and a section is to provide brief answers to some of the questions...

Sidewalks have at least two significant meanings in William Faulkner's acclaimed short story, "A Rose for Emily." They provide her with a way of meeting her doomed beau, Homer Barron, who has come...

Certainly the whole town has enabled Miss Emily's actions by playing to her disillusionment. If Miss Emily does indeed represent the Old South and its stagnation while the town represents the New...

"The town had just let the contracts for paving the sidewalks, and in the summer after her father’s death they began the work. The construction company came with riggers and mules and machinery,...

Miss Emily purchases some rather intimate gifts for Homer Barron that a wife might purchase for a husband. She buys him a silver toiletry set, engraved with his initials, as well as a full set of...

In Faulkner's gothic story, "A Rose for Emily," while the differences between Mr. Grierson and Homer Barron are distinct as outlined above, there is one similarity between Emily's Southern...

The first indication that there IS a sense of responsibility that is shared by the community is evident in the narrative of William Faulkner's "A Rose for Emily". The unnamed townsfolk narrator is...

Emily Grierson and Homer Barron in "A Rose for Emily" differ significantly in character and background. Emily is a reclusive Southern aristocrat, while Homer is a Northern laborer and a social...

Homer Barron is a static character.

The discovery in the upstairs room in "A Rose for Emily" is the decomposed body of Homer Barron. This shocking revelation, along with the evidence of a long gray hair on the pillow beside him,...

The surprising resolution and final revelation in "A Rose for Emily" is that Emily Grierson has kept the corpse of her deceased lover, Homer Barron, in her house for many years. This macabre...

The townspeople react with a mix of curiosity and disapproval to Emily's relationship with Homer. They gossip about the couple and speculate on the appropriateness and future of their relationship,...

The significance of "A Rose for Emily" continuing for thirty years after Homer Barron's death emphasizes Emily's isolation and the town's evolving perception of her. This prolonged period underscores...

Faulkner never states outright that Miss Emily killed Homer Barron, but that's the beauty of modern writing; it follows Hemingway's "iceberg theory," wherein the writer focuses on that which is on...

When Faulkner first introduces Homer Baron in “A Rose for Emily,” he is described as “a big, dark, ready man, with a big voice and eyes lighter than his face.” This description indicates that Baron...

Homer Barron is a big, loud, Yankee. And he's a "day laborer." Such a choice of suitor would have absolutely horrified Miss Emily's father when he were alive. As stalwart representatives of a...

In her essay “Tension, Contradiction, and Ambiguity,” Bailey Basinger argues that “A Rose for Emily” reveals the townspeople’s preoccupation with gender roles and sexuality as they project their...

In "A Rose for Emily," Homer Barron is the personification of the lower-class Northerner who has come to conquer the Old South. His rough, crude behavior shows in his loud voice and mannerisms, as...

Homer Barron plays a crucial role in "A Rose for Emily" as a symbol of change and the North's influence on the South. His relationship with Emily highlights her resistance to change and societal...

Very good interpretation. I've wondered how the title fits the story, and your suggestion seems to fit. My question is how did Emily and Homer meet? If she was such a recluse that she wouldn't...

As the druggist, I would have demanded to know what Emily was going to use the poison for. And if she claimed it would be used to kill rats, but I was still suspicious, I might try to contact Tobe...

Short answer : Miss Emily's relationship with Homer Barron is not at all like relationships in the South during her time. Whenever one discusses a work of literature, consideration must always be...

In "A Rose for Emily," other forces that conflict with Emily include societal expectations and gossip, which isolate her, and the changing social and economic landscape of the South, which she...

In William Faulkner's "A Rose for Emily," the townspeople of Jefferson have mixed perceptions of Miss Emily Grierson. Initially, they are intrigued and somewhat supportive of her relationship with...

In William Faulkner's "A Rose for Emily," the primary conflict is between Miss Emily Grierson and society, reflecting her struggle to maintain her aristocratic status in a changing world. Her...

In William Faulkner's "A Rose for Emily," Emily Grierson's conflicts with her neighbors highlight her stubborn adherence to outdated Southern traditions. Her refusal to pay taxes, despite new town...

In William Faulkner's "A Rose for Emily," Emily Grierson's relationship with Homer Barron, a Northern laborer, is marked by societal disapproval and her own desperate need for companionship. Despite...