...Gothic Elements Gothic can be defined as literature written to conduct “frightening, feral scenarios in which mysterious secrets, extreme isolation, grotesque images, and characters’ duress combine to create a dark and horrid image for its bold readers” (Renaldo 2). Generally presenting the same themes and tropes, Gothic literature discusses madness, isolation, disease, nightmares, and death. Although in some stories, it also explores unmentionable topics such as murder, suicide, and incest. William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” is a story of a spinster woman who has killed her lover and lain for years beside his decaying body. The story deals with a murder caused by possessive love, and it elucidates the face of death which results in repulsion and compassion. “A Rose for Emily” represents Southern Gothic literature through descriptions of Emily, her house, necrophilia, and the theme of death. To begin with, the narrator portrays Emily Grierson as a once prominent member of the community. However, after the death of her father, she is pitied and often irritating, demanding to live life on her own terms. In the beginning of the story, the author describes her as looking “bloated, like a body long submerged in motionless water, and of that pallid hue. Her eyes, lost in the fatty ridges of her face, [look] like two small pieces of coal pressed into a lump of dough” (Faulkner 53). Being isolated from the outside world since her father died and Homer Barron, her lover, went...
Words: 1177 - Pages: 5
...Faulkner’s captivating story “A Rose for Emily” is a shining example of gothic literature. Faulkner expresses sadness for the love that is not returned, and a drive that Miss Emily Grierson uses to get what she wishes for. He adapts a gloomy and mysterious tone in order to compare Miss Emily’s rejection to young adults today. Faulkner opens his story by expressing the amount of respect that is shown at Miss Emily’s funeral. It is said that the entire town attended this event, but also that some only showed up to see what the inside of her house looked liked because no one had been inside in over ten years. He explains this to show the mysterious appeal of Miss Emily. By explaining the mystery in Miss Emily, he conveys a dark tone that baffles the audience. Faulkner then shifts the story toward explaining what Miss Emily’s house had once looked like. It was a big grim house that was once white. It was the only one left on the street and many believes that it was an abomination to the community. It is evident that Miss Emily and her house are connected in a way. Miss Emily’s family was once one of the most prominent in the town because of the relationship the father had with Colonel Sartoris, but as she grew older the opinions of her social status changed along with her. Her father not only had great power within the community, he also had power over her as well. This authority is shown through the portrait that Faulkner painted in the story: Miss Emily a slender figure in white...
Words: 845 - Pages: 4
...Gothic Elements Used in A Rose for Emily Southern Gothic became popular in the 19th century by famous short story writers such as Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Ambrose Bierce. Unlike traditional gothic writing, Southern Gothic is unique to the American South and goes in depth about unpleasant Southern Characteristics. It focuses on details such as death, violence and grotesque aspects. These are all used to “explore social issues and reveal the cultural character of the American South (Wikipedia).” Authors use Southern Gothic writing to show the brokenness of a character by giving them qualities such as isolation, freakishness and people that are “not right in the head (Oprah).” Authors analyze their character and want you to make your own decision about who they are by using characteristics that make them seem insane, though to the character, they are normal. Mortality is usually a possibility to most characters. Although authors point out a certain type of innocence, desperation usually overpowers any type of innocence given to a character. The sense of place in Southern Gothic is usually related to a dusty home with a front porch wrapped around, a screen door swinging on creaky hinges and your someone sitting in a rocking chair swatting at flies. The town would be small with a general store that is barely hanging on and the town drunk works there. The sense of place is a strong characteristic in Southern Gothic writing. It sets the feel for the writing...
Words: 704 - Pages: 3
...Miss Emily “The past is never dead, it’s not even past.” In his story “A Rose for Emily,” William Faulkner personifies this quote. William Faulkner is one of the most influential writers in southern literature, if not U.S. history. He spent most of his time in his home state of Mississippi in the northern counties of Lafayette, Holly Springs, and Marshall County which play a major role in his literature. Almost every book or short story he writes is set in Yoknapatawpha County, which some believe is based on his home county of Lafayette, which is where he spent most of his life. Because of this most of his books have a southern aspect of them and represent to some extent southern culture and hospitality. One of his stories with the most success is “A Rose For Emily.” "A Rose for Emily" is a gothic tale set in the American south. To first understand William Faulkner and his stories, one must understand what the term “Gothic” means. Gothic isn't just a term used in literature but in architecture, and even in art. Generally something is labeled “Gothic” when it is something that inspires dread in you, or a lesser sense or being. In its literal sense in literature it means a story that uses themes like gloom, the grotesque, and the supernatural. It is also usually based in a dark or dreary scene. In the story “A Rose for Emily” it encompasses all three of these themes and settings. First lets look at the setting in how it relates to the Gothic characteristics...
Words: 1283 - Pages: 6
...the Gothic elements of “A Rose for Emily” Gothic can be defined as “literature dealing with the strange, mysterious, and supernatural designed to invoke suspense and terror in the reader.” (Pickering, 2004, p. 1425) Gothic literature generally presents the same themes and motifs: love lost, hidden secrets, love and death hand in hand, beauty, youth, grotesque characters, macabre eroticism, etc. Gothic literature also explores taboo subjects such as murder, suicide and incest. “A Rose for Emily”, by William Faulkner, is representative of the Southern Gothic stories since the themes of love lost, death, and murder are present in it. There are many elements that hint at the Gothic nature of the story: Emily’s description, her house, the poison she bought, and finally the ending. Emily, the protagonist, used to be the perfect young and rich lady living with her father, but now she is an old woman living alone in her crumbling house. However, the inhabitants of the city she where she lives respect her. Throughout the story, the author describes her as being weird and lonely. “She looked bloated, like a body long submerged in motionless water, and of that pallid hue. Her eyes, lost in the fatty ridges of her face, looked like two small pieces of coal pressed into a lump of dough.” She is described as a living death. This description creates suspense for the readers. Then, later on in the story, Emily denies her father’s death and refuses to let people come in her house...
Words: 723 - Pages: 3
...Gothic writing essay In the works The Black Cat, by Edgar Allen Poe, A Rose for Emily, by William Faulkner, and Prey, by Richard Matheson all exhibits the gothic elements of violence and revenge along with the main charters having psychological issues. A use of violence in the Gothic works The Black Cat, A Rose for Emily, and Prey, help to further establish the charters in the stories and add into the horror that makes them Gothic. An example of this in The Black Cat is when the main charter gets mad at his wife, because she saved the cat from his wrath, but then he “withdrew [his] arm from her grasp and buried the axe into her brain” (Poe 4). In this example of violence form Poe’s story he shows how mental unstable the main charter is and how a simple outreach to save a cat leads to murder helps to fully exemplify the gothic element of violence. Other examples of violence would be in A Rose for Emily when Emily finds out the man she loves is not interested in settling down she took matters into her own hands as the towns people found out upon Emily’s death years later when “the man himself lay in the bed. For a long time while [the community] stood there, looking down at the profound and fleshless grin” (Falkner 1074). Here in this story Emily vengefully and violently took matters into her own hands so her love could stay with her...
Words: 584 - Pages: 3
...McCaster AP English 12 September 8, 2011 Gothic Elements in “A Rose for Emily” Novelist, William Faulkner, in his short story “A Rose for Emily” Illustrates several Southern Gothic Elements. This particular story has a moody and forbidding atmosphere. Throughout the short story Faulkner depicts images of a cold dark neighbor and a dilapidated mansion. Through these elements this creates a dark and ominous feeling throughout the story. The story begins describing the funeral of Miss Emily. Miss Emily and her family had once been the center of the town and now Miss Emily’s reputation had died right along with the rest of the old men and women of the town. The narrator explains that the men attended her funeral out of obligation while the women came because no one had seen the inside of her house in years. Miss. Emily lived a very shelter life. Miss Emily was always alone and eventually the neighborhood starts to make rude comments about her. They begin to connote her as” crazy” but she was really not use to living on her own and was still morning the lost of her father. The story goes on to illustrate Emily’s house as “an eyesore among eyesores”. This house had once been white “the best looking house in the neighborhood” but is still decorated with the style of the seventies. She lived in a neighborhood that once was the best neighborhood in town, now deserted. The only house that was left was the one of Miss Emily. This particular house was ragged from many years...
Words: 438 - Pages: 2
...Bad Meets Evil In the gothic literature short stories “Prey”, “The Devil and Tom Walker”, “The Black Cat”, and “A Rose for Emily” composed by Richard Matheson, Washington Irving, Edgar Allan Poe, and William Faulkner exercise their knowledge of gothic themes of entrapment and ambiguity to create a persuasive sense of exasperation and apprehension for the reader. Authors such as Richard Matheson, Washington Irving, and William Faulkner predominantly use the gothic theme entrapment in their writing. In fact, in “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner the central character Emily “no longer went out at all” (Faulkner 1066). This caused her to become extremely lonely in the later years of her life. This is due to the loss of her husband Colonel Sartoris. Faulkner states “A deputation waited upon her, knocked at the door through which no visitor had passed since she ceased giving china-painting lessons eight or ten years earlier.” (Faulkner 1068) in light of demonstrating the entrapment she created for herself as a means of dealing with her husband's death by...
Words: 612 - Pages: 3
...A Close Reading of William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” portrays itself as sort of a gothic sort of story. The elements of a gothic novel are meant to fashion a sense of trepidation, obscurity and unknown, which are vital in creating compelling stories. It has its fill of suspense and madness throughout its entirety, resulting in fastidious conventions in its type of writing structure, characterization, point of view, theme, and setting. Gothic novels are also known to contain an element of romance, which are often exaggerated to the extremes. I would say that the main point of view of this selected passage comes from an unknown narrator, told in the first person, who clearly is a resident of the town of Jefferson and knows the little-known life of the protagonist, Miss Emily. The “they” that is in the second sentence refers to the group of townsfolk who arrived at her house. The emotions of the crowd are a mixture of respectful condolences and curiosity. The men are present merely out of respect, giving off an air they only attend because it is an expected behavior and not because she was popular in the community. The women go out of curiosity to see the inside of the house. There certainly seems to be a general consensus among the group that she was living almost a secret life which was clearly meant to stay that way. The phrase “would have to be forced” makes it clear the group is anxious about finding out what has been kept from the...
Words: 1790 - Pages: 8
...Natalie Reynolds English 1102 section 97 Mandi Sena January 22, 2014 Techniques Gothic Literature, sometimes referred to as Gothic horror, is a genre of literature that combines elements of both horror and romance. The Gothic literature feel is achieved through manipulating literature elements to portray the story or poem how the writer/speaker wants. There are ten main elements that can be manipulated; the setting, the environment, atmosphere, protagonists, emotions, damsels in distress, foreboding, the supernatural, decay of characters, and finally, drama. When writing gothic literature one must use their personal techniques in manipulating the elements to achieve the gothic qualities desired; William Faulkner, Edgar Allan Poe, and Sylvia Plath all use different techniques in their writing and this is what gives each of their pieces of literature a different feel. For example in William Faulkner’s A Rose for Emily he uses techniques unique to himself. Such as, writing the story in an alternating kind of way to help the readers to carry the action forward in their own minds by suggesting doubt in the story line, this allows us to be surprised at the end when we find out what really happens. This back and forth style of writing is prominent throughout the whole story, but the biggest example is that Emily starts out dead and then the writer proceeds to continue the rest of the story from back when she was alive. His story also has a creepy setting where anything can...
Words: 953 - Pages: 4
...Southern Gothic Literature Southern gothic literature became famous by Edgar Allen Poe in the 1900’s. Then in the 1920’s and 1930’s William Faulkner made it popular again. Southern gothic literature is the writing about the American south such as, the plantations, dusty downtowns, and aging southern belles. Three southern gothic literature authors that have changed and twisted it to make it their own are William Faulkner, Harper Lee, and Eudora Welty. William Faulkner’s story “A Rose for Emily”, Eudora Welty’s story “A Worn Path”, and Harper Lee's book To Kill A Mockingbird are three southern gothic books that show southern gothic writing. In “A Worn Path”, “A Rose for Emily”, and To Kill A Mockingbird the authors use the element of horror to scare and surprise the reader. Without a doubt there are many ways to make someone think of what you want them to think of just by using words. Eudora Welty makes you think that someone is going to get killed and that the story will end sad. In “A Worn Path” the main character Phoenix goes on this journey to get her grandson’s medication. Phoenix is an old negro woman, she has hallucinations on her journey and isn’t afraid of anything. This story shows horror being used because on her journey she runs into a young white hunter and his dog. When she is walking, she hears a dog and turns around. The dog then jumps up and pushes her into a ditch. The dog’s owner comes along and helps her up. However,when...
Words: 1433 - Pages: 6
...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...
Words: 1677 - Pages: 7
...Mike-Irabor English 1302: Composition 2 David Glen Smith, Instructor November 29, 2012 Research Paper Miss Emily Grierson and Eveline The family and society’s expectation of a woman has led to some women becoming tragic heroes and anti-heroes who battled consistently with their true identity. Literary works of William Faulkner in the short story, "A Rose for Emily", and James Joyce’s "Eveline", reflects the negative impact of these expectations. Based on information, culled from Dr David Smith’s notes, tragic heroes are driven and obsessed with past deeds or by fate, they are neither entirely good nor entirely bad and are fated to cause grief to individuals or to the community, they are often leaders in the community or head of family (2). Faulkner shows these common traits of tragic hero in Miss Emily Grierson; a protagonist in self-exile from the modern world, locked away in her decaying mansion (3). In James Joyce’s Eveline, a protagonist is revealed as tragic hero who endures a dramatic and tragic life full of conflicts, but Smith thinks otherwise, he refers to her as an anti-hero and is of the opinion that antihero should not be confused with tragic hero because, “existentialist believed modern life does not allow the existence of a true hero. Modern life dehumanizes everyone”(3), short of this, Eveline is a classic example of a tragic hero. William Faulkner’s Miss Emily and James Joyce’s Eveline are women who in the quest of fulfilling the roles assigned to them by their...
Words: 2596 - Pages: 11
...A Red, Red Rose BY ROBERT BURNS O my Luve is like a red, red rose That’s newly sprung in June; O my Luve is like the melody That’s sweetly played in tune. So fair art thou, my bonnie lass, So deep in luve am I; And I will luve thee still, my dear, Till a’ the seas gang dry. Till a’ the seas gang dry, my dear, And the rocks melt wi’ the sun; I will love thee still, my dear, While the sands o’ life shall run. And fare thee weel, my only luve! And fare thee weel awhile! And I will come again, my luve, Though it were ten thousand mile. The Castle of Otranto- Summary The novel begins with the impending marriage of Conrad, son the lord of the Castle Otranto, to Isabella. On the day of the marriage, Conrad is mysteriously struck down by a helmet that falls from the sky and crushes his skull and killing him. Remembering the curse set over the inhabitants of Castle of Otranto declaring that, should they become too proud, they will be replaced by another family, Conrad’s father Manfred panics. Afraid that his family is about to be ended, he decides to divorce his wife, Hippolita, because she has failed to give him a healthy son. Instead, he will marry Isabella himself and attempt to continue his line. But Isabella escapes. Aided by a peasant, Theodore, she manages to escape to Friar Jerome who gives her sanctuary before Manfred can force her into marriage. Infuriated at her attempt to thwart him, Manfred sets out to get Isabella back,...
Words: 2101 - Pages: 9
...ENG 102 06 May 2013 Southern Aspects of Gothic Literature Southern gothic writing is a sub genre of the gothic writhing that was originated and most popular during the 1800s in Europe. Southern gothic is unique to American literature in the way that it relies on supernatural, ironic, or unusual events that guide the plot (wisegeek.org.) Unlike gothic style it uses the tools not for the purpose of suspense, but to explore the social issues, and reveal the cultural character of the American south (people.duke.edu.) It is considered to be “Grotesque” which displays a character whose negative qualities allow the author to highlight unpleasant aspects in southern culture. Its defining feature is that it symbolizes problems created by the established pattern and then questions the established pattern’s morality and ethical justification (wisegeek.org.) Some of the other specific features that this style of literature has, is its freakishness; being an outsider; imprisonment; violence; and even the sense of setting in which it takes place(wisegeek.org.) There is usually an important character that is set apart from the world by some kind of negative way, or disability (wisegeek.org.) Some characters may not follow the established cultural pattern but in the end they are considered heroes. Some kind of difference allows them to see a new way of doing things that help bring people to the dark side. When speaking of imprisonment, it is both literal and figurative (wisegeek...
Words: 1540 - Pages: 7
