It has often been said that death is a new type of life. People have debated on whether there is life after death, the nature of death, human emotion towards death, and what death exactly is for centuries. Throughout all known history, individuals have used literature, art, philosophy, and media to portray and justify a true view and accurate representation of the nature of death and all that it entails. This is no less true in southern gothic writing and in the writings of William Faulkner. Published on April 30, 1930 in a major magazine at the time, Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” showcases the life of Ms. Emily Grierson, a local townswoman, and is captured in a mysterious and eventually horrific context that allows the reader to understand the sadness and morbid side of death. The story is a set in a southern context that Faulkner knew all too well and contains implications of contrasts between northern and southern society. Faulkner uses many different elements in this work to portray death in its entire grotesque and horrifying splendor. Particularly, Faulkner uses two certain elements to accomplish this task. Faulkner successfully conveys the theme of the power of death in “A Rose for Emily” by incorporating the use of the literary elements of foreshadowing and narrative voice.
Faulkner’s use of foreshadowing works to reveal the theme of death in this work rather well. The story is divided into five different passages, each detailing a progression towards death – the end of Emily Grierson’s life. Just by listening to Faulkner’s tone in the first sentence and throughout the rest of the work, the reader can easily determine there is a definite presence of foreshadowing: “When Miss Emily Grierson died, our whole town went to her funeral: the men through a sort of respectful affection for a fallen monument, the women mostly out of curiosity to see the inside of her house, which no one save an old manservant- a combined gardener and cook-had seen in at least ten years”(Faulkner 99). Notice how Grierson’s death is mentioned in the first five words and how she is referred to as a “fallen monument”. Little phrases like “fallen monument” and references to death are not only used to make the story creepier, but to foreshadow that something bad is going to happen to Grierson. The first and last passages establish the use of foreshadowing and final outcome, whereas the middle passages detail the actual progression. In the first paragraph, there is hinting at Grierson’s death as explained in Davis’s criticism: “But indeed even in the first section of the story there are numerous hints at the final portrait of the Miss Emily of section five. The men go to her funeral “through a sort of respectful affection for a “fallen monument.” Her house is “an eyesore among eyesores,” it symbolizing Miss Emily herself in its “coquettish decay”; inside there is a “tarnished gilt easel”; Miss Emily has an “ebony cane with a tarnished gold head”; and she herself looks “bloated, like a body long submerged in motionless water” ”(Davis). These examples show how Faulkner does not simply state that Grierson was getting old. Instead he presents the evidence through careful description and by using other literary elements as foreshadowing. One of the examples mentioned previously in Davis’s criticism shows how Faulkner uses foreshadowing to constantly remind the reader of what is to come: “She looked bloated, like a body long submerged in motionless water, and of that pallid hue”(Faulkner 100). Here, Faulkner’s uses a double-edged sword to convey the theme of death. This example not only uses a simile to convey the theme by comparison, but it too serves as an example of foreshadowing. It serves as a reminder that Grierson is doomed to death’s grasp. With these descriptions already in mind, the death of Grierson would not seem like a surprising outcome in the end to the reader. The power of death is also illustrated by Grierson’s attempts to escape it as told during the second passage when she starts going out with Homer Barron, a new townsmen from the north. However, this attempt is doomed as well and is an example of Faulkner’s use of foreshadowing through the plot. As explained further in Davis’s analysis, this resistance is futile: “Thus, with respect to the relationships of time and structure in “A Rose for Emily” Faulkner seems to be saying that although Miss Emily resists the passage of time, resists change, time ultimately fixes her in a rather perverse manner. In terms of life and existence, Miss Emily's past and her passages through and within time are “inescapable”; her struggles against time are of no avail. Time moves forward tranquilly, imperviously, and inescapably. Miss Emily is seen in the story, first and last, as she is in death. The struggle for existence and meaning in the now of every present is commendable, but to have too high a regard for the dearness of one's own life is ultimately to deny the possibility for its realization. To covet life too highly, thereby attempting to stop time, to freeze the flux of life, is to make of something “dear” a perversity”(Davis). Grierson does things like trying to find love and feel young again with Homer Barron. When Grierson finally realizes that she cannot have these things with Barron, she kills him in order to “freeze time” and make love possible with death. Faulkner’s use of foreshadowing emphasizes why death is so sad and morbid. No matter how death is used, it is still the end of a life and cannot be made beautiful or truly useful in any way. Faulkner’s use of narrative voice presents pity on Mrs. Emily’s life and explains how her situation is received with mixed feelings. The fact that the narrator seems to be a woman is supportive of the story’s theme. The narrator seems to be a woman because of the way men are portrayed particularly in the fourth passage: “The men did not want to interfere, but at last the ladies forced the Baptist minister… to call upon her”(Faulkner 103). The ladies seem to be favored more by the narrator in this example along with many others, which suggests that the narrator is a woman and views Grierson somewhat as a necessary nuisance on society. It’s almost as if the narrator finds her death appropriate, as explained in Burduck’s criticism: “This coterie of Jefferson's “finer” ladies (represented by the narrator) seems highly offended by Emily's actions. This resentment might stem from two primary causes. First, the ladies (the phrase “the ladies” appears throughout the tale and might refer to the “proper” Southern belles living in town) find Miss Emily's pre-marital relationship immoral. Second, they resent Emily's seeing a Yankee man. In the eyes of these flowers of Southern femininity, Emily Grierson becomes a stain on the white gown of Southern womanhood” ” (Burduck). The narrator seems to represent the town’s ladies and see her as a stain on society. Although the women pity her, they only pity her situation and seem to believe it would be best for her to die. The reasoning behind this stems from the historical context that the work is set it in. While the southern women that seem to be represented by the narrator do pity Grierson’s situation, they are not too happy about how Grierson falls in love with a man from the north or how she seems to have a real relationship before marriage. This simultaneous pity and shame is further described by Burduck’s explanation as well: “The reader is left with a very important question: why would a lady desire to repeat Miss Emily's story? The narrator's “dual vision” (as Blythe calls it) provides a clue. As a woman offended by Emily's actions, the speaker relates this tale of necrophilia in an attempt to vindicate Southern womanhood”(Burduck). This attitude of the narrator suggests that she along with the proper women of the town think that Grierson is indeed better off dead due to her immoral violation of the status quo of southern society. The use of the elements of foreshadowing and narrative voice in “A Rose for Emily” maintains the theme of the power of death. Foreshadowing works to slowly bring Grierson’s life to an end, while the narrative voice emphasizes it, concentrating on images and descriptions of death throughout the entire work. Foreshadowing makes the reader expect Grierson’s death in the end. The narrative voice of the work presents pity on Ms. Grierson’s life and explains that although her situation is received with mixed feelings, her death is most appropriate. By the careful use of these elements, Faulkner seems to make his point clearly. While death may be resisted for some time, no one can escape it. Death is eternal and will be the end to every living and non-living thing as humans know it. This is the message that Faulkner delivers by incorporating the use of literary elements such as ones explained in this essay, along with many others. By fitting this theme with a gothic mood, Faulkner is able to transcend its meaning and to make the ending of the story so horrific but unsurprising as it is. Faulkner’s theme in his work finally takes its certainty. Death is for certain, but life is not.

Works Cited

Burduck, Michael L. "Another View of Faulkner's Narrator in 'A Rose for Emily'." The University of Mississippi Studies in English 8 (1990): 209-211. Rpt. In Literature Resource Center. Detroit: Gale, 2015. Literature Resource Center. Web. 20 Feb. 2015.

Davis, William V. “Another Flower for Faulkner’s Bouquet: Theme and Structure in “A Rose for Emily.” Notes on Mississippi Writers 7.2 (Fall 1974): 34-38. Rpt. In Literature Resource Center. Detroit: Gale, 2015. Literature Resource Center. Web. 20 Feb. 2015

Faulkner, William C. "A Rose for Emily." 1930. The Bedford Introduction to Literature. By Michael Meyer. 10th ed. Vol. 10. Boston/New York: Bedford/ St. Martin's, 2013. 99-105. Print.