Rose for Emily

​He lived from 1897 - 1962.

Was born and lived most of his life in Mississippi.
A true southern gentleman.

He wrote many novels, all set in the south. He also wrote several short stories.

Has often been called the greatest writer to come from the south. Won the Nobel Prize.

​"The most distinguishing aspect of Southern Gothic literature is its focus on the grotesque. The old Gothic genre contains supernatural and haunting elements: the Southern Gothic took these surreal elements and made them painfully real. Characters have deformities, old manors collapse on themselves, resources rot away, individuals are cruelly mistreated, etc. The "grotesque" refers to an unexpected shift in what would be considered normal, rendering an individual or object uncanny. This schism between expectation and brutal actuality can evoke unease, distaste, or even sadness and compassion" (Study.com).

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​Began in England.....came to the US.... Gothic literature is a literary genre that evokes fear and haunting, and is characterized by mystery, horror, and the supernatural.

Frankenstein - by Mary Shelley
Dracula - by Bram Stoker
Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde - by Robert Louis Stevenson

Edgar Allen Poe wrote many poems and short storied in the Gothic tradition

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Be prepared to meet my favorite character... the houseman, Tobe. He is referred to simply as the Negro.

As we read, we will see that he is a very noble man.... and super intelligent.


But .....oh that epithet! Parts 2 and 3

Why did Faulkner even use it?

​close reading---asking questions and making connections as we read..... missing nothing.

​It was written in 1929... published in 1930.

Civil War ended in 1865...... slaves were freed....

so only 65 years later..... epithets were probably used freely at that time

​Many critics feel that:

William Faulkner's purpose for writing "A Rose for Emily" is to confront how the Old South influenced the New South, making it difficult for the South to fully escape its racist past. Emily exhibits the values of the Old South while the town of Jefferson is modernizing.

​The story is written in parts...... but they are non-linear--- which means the story does not run in a straight line.

Flashbacks, flipping around in time, etc

​“A Rose for Emily” is told from the point of view of unnamed narrators who harbor their own attitudes towards Emily.

​encroach - intrude on a person's territory or a thing considered to be a right.
obliterate - destroy utterly; wipe out
august - respected and impressive
edict - an official order or proclamation issued by a person in authority.
remit- send (money) in payment or as a gift.
deputation - a group of people appointed to undertake a mission or take part in a formal process on behalf of a larger group
dank - disagreeably damp, musty, and typically cold.
mote - a tiny piece of a substance.

​The Narrator - Unnamed. A presumed townsperson who watches the events of Emily's life unfold in its entirety. The story is presented to the reader in a non-chronological order; this suggests that the story may have been patched together by multiple tellers. Some parts of the story are repeated, such as Homer's disappearance, the idea that Emily and Homer will get married, and Emily's refusal to pay taxes, also indicating that the narrator is a voice for the town.

vanquish - ​to overcome or to subdue
temerity - excessive confidence or boldness
diffident - midest or shy
deprecation - criticism or disapproval
sowing - planting seeds by scattering on the earth
vindicated - cleared someone of blame or suspicion
pauper - a very poor person

​craned - having to do with the making of silk
jalousies - blinds or shutters made of slats
impervious - unable to be affected by
haughty - arrogantly superior

​divulge - make known, reveal
cabal - a secret political clique or faction
circumvent - find a way around (an obstacle)
thwart - to prevent someone from accopmplishing something
virulent - extremely severe or harmful in its effects
vigorous - strong, healthy, full of energy
niche - a comfortable or suitable position in life or employment
doddering - moving in a feeble or unsteady way

​sibilant - making or characterized by a hissing sound
bier - a movable frame on which a coffin or a corpse is placed before burial or cremation or on which it is carried to the grave.
macabre - disturbing and horrifying.. involving depiction of death and injury
diminishing - making or becoming less
pervading - spreading through... perceived in every part of
acrid - irritatingly strong and unpleasant smell or taste
pall - something spread over or covering something else
cuckold - a person whose mate has been sexually unfaithful
inextricable - impossible to disentangle or separate