Faulkner’s Creative Use of Time in A Rose for Emily William Faulkner must have not believed in writing in chronological order when he portrayed the events in A Rose for Emily, and in good reason. The story begins at, if written in chronological order, what would be right before the end. He then continues the story jumping backwards and moving forwards. A key part is skipped in the retelling of Miss Emily Grierson’s life, which is told at the end of the storyline, and it is perhaps the most interesting part of the story. The story starts off at Miss Emily Geirson’s funeral. Emily is the main character in the story, and Faulkner has her dead in the first sentence. It should be noted that neither Faulkner, nor Emily are the narrator for the story, and instead the narrator is the viewpoint of the general townspeople that knew, or thought they knew, Emily Grierson. Faulkner then has the narrator explain Emily’s house, which plays a mysterious role in the story. It was said for the women that attended her funeral, “mostly out of curiosity to see the inside of her house.” (Faulkner 91) The story then goes on to tell the origin of Miss Emily’s tax evasion, a settlement she got away with, until the newer generation of mayors and aldermen came in to power. It goes on to tell the time before her death where a deputation from the Board of Alderman visited Emily to settle the dispute of the taxes. When Emily answered the door, it gives an external glimpse of Emily’s life at the time. The story describes her as “A body long submerged in motionless water, and of that pallid hue.” (Faulkner 92) This paints a vivid picture of a depressed Emily. So again, the aftermath is shown before what would be the cause, and in this case, the reason for her depression. The story continues to move backwards in time, and it is at this point where the narrator first brings up a horrible smell emitting from her household. This is a good example of foreshadowing, in which William Faulkner used frequently in the story. You find out later that the smell is from a dead body. Faulkner then jumps back in time to her father’s death, a time where Emily kept her dead father’s body in the house for three days before she gave in to allow his burial. The narrator states, “We did not think say she was crazy then.” (Faulkner 93) This makes the reader believe that at the point of time when her father died, she was not believed to be crazy, but was later on considered crazy by the town’s people. The reader then begins to hypothesize that some event must have happened after her father’s death that would make the town’s people consider her crazy, but it has yet to be stated by the story. The story line then switches to linear order, and talks about a new love interest of Emily. Faulkner does not go too in-depth at this point on the relationship between Emily and her new lover, Homer Barron, before jumping to a year later. Miss Emily buys some arsenic from a druggist, and when asked what the purpose of the poison, she “just stared at him.” (Faulkner 94) This is another example of Faulkner and his foreshadowing. This led the town’s people to believe that Miss Emily was going to commit suicide. Moving back in time again, the story goes back to the point where Sarah was first with Homer. The town’s people were convinced, during this time in the story, that Emily would marry Homer. The story tells an event where Homer returned home one evening, but was never to be seen again. Emily, in fact, was not also seen for some time. At this point in time the reader assumes that Emily lost her lover, just like she lost her father, and the arsenic would be used to kill herself to end the depressing feelings. It also could explain why in confrontation earlier on in the story, but later in real time, Emily looked so depressed. Faulkner makes the reader believe the story is all figured out, ironically just like the town’s people. Emily ends up dying after not being seen for a great deal of time. In the finally of this roller coaster of a timeline, the story ends at the funeral, where it begin. But this time it continues as the curiosity of the women drives them to break down the door of the untouched room upstairs. The women find a bed, and a dead body with a nightshirt on laying down in it. The body is assumed to be Homer, and explains the foreshadowing earlier in the story. The reader puts together all the information previously given, and it gives a whole new perspective on Miss Emily. Faulkner’s use of time in A Rose for Emily was interesting to say the least. It offered a good twist at the end, and told a story in an unconventional way. The way Faulkner portrays the story can be compared to the modern day movie Memento. Faulkner “gives the reader a puzzle consisting of fragments.” (Ruthmann 3) This allows the reader to stay more engaged, and offers a trilling reading experience.