Gothic Elements in Faulkner's "A Rose for Emily" - Essay Sample

Introduction

Faulkner, in his short story titled "A Rose for Emily," uses several Gothic elements to advance the plot of the story and establish the right atmosphere in the story. The term Gothic was coined at around the 12th century with the medieval style of ornate and intricate architecture (Baldick 10). It gained popularity in the 18th century in the romantic era. It involved gruesome tales of human experience, which was somewhat unfamiliar and extremely dark literature. The literature was published in the past centuries but gained popularity in the present modern era, and they offer a deep connection with the past centuries, especially for fiction writers and literary collectors. The Gothic elements in the story make the reader get imbued with an eerie feeling (Baldick 13). Within the story, several scenes project extreme fear, death, gloom, and horrific experiences. Through the use of these Gothic elements, the author establishes a morbid atmosphere. This is vividly evident from the onset of the story where there is a scene of death and illusion of funeral in the strange cemetery. Other elements that the short story covers include; the imposing decrepit houses, the decayed corpse, mysterious secrete horrors among others.

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Establishing the Morbid Atmosphere: Gothic Elements in "A Rose for Emily"

In his story, Faulkner uses the gothic elements to create a particular atmosphere that drives the reader of the story into a creepy and weird state of mind. He uses the gothic elements to create a foreshadowing and a feeling of mystery, which is especially evident in the scene with the corpse. The story is conveyed in such a manner that it has a beautiful beginning, followed by a troubled life of sorrow and then the end of it all is death. The idea of death can be found in the title itself, "rose." A rose is a flower that symbolizes love and beauty, which fades quickly as well as the life of both. Besides, the thorns found on the rose flower represent the sorrowful life that is evident in the story. Additionally, the color of rose shows blood and the eventual loss of life, one as showed the scene of the corpse of Emily's father, which had rotted in the house. Typically, it is unusual to keep a corpse for a whole decade, and this adds on to the creepiness of the story.

One of the critical features of the story is the decrepit house. Within this feature, there is the concept of transition from old to new. Faulkner uses the narrator's eye to describe it:

"It was a big, squarish frame house that had once been white, decorated with cupolas and spires and scrolled balconies in the heavily lightsome style of the seventies, set on what had once been our most select street. But garages and cotton gins had encroached and obliterated even the august names of that neighborhood; only Miss Emily's house was left, lifting its stubborn and coquettish decay above the cotton wagons and the gasoline pumps - an eyesore among eyesores (Faulkner 1)."

The Decrepit House: Transition and Tradition in Faulkner's Story

The appearance of the house is desolate, dingy, and rugged, which is a reflection of her mindset. She is resistant to transition and is stuck in tradition. Emily had blocked anyone from seeing the house or getting in, except for the Negro who, after the funeral, disappeared completely. The house drew curiosity from among the members of the community, and they could not wait to see what it was like on the inside after Emily passed away. This also sparks a gnawing curiosity within the reader to crave for details. He explains what the house once looked like, big and white, and was the only one that was left on the streets, which the community considered as an abomination. In a way, Emily and the house were connected (Mellard 42).

Another gothic element in the story is a mystery. There are mysterious happenings within the story, some of which the hometown people yearn to know. The narrator speculates that Emily did not leave the house not once since the death of the father and refused that nobody should come in as well. After a while, the house starts smelling, and the people are forced to apply lime to reduce the stench. She attracts both disgust and sympathy at the same time from the people of her community, as explored by the narrator. Emily refused to give up the corpse of her father, although she is the probable murderer (Mellard 39). The story is filled with a dark setting, which depicts how isolation prohibits a healthy state of mind. The story is based in the south at a point in time when the men dominated the society, in which case Emily could not find a husband because all the suitors that came her way the father sent away saying that they were not good enough for his daughter.

Conclusion

Emily is a fictitious character whom the narrator depicts as unable to lead a normal life. She cannot have a normal life with love and affection. The location of Emily's house is close to the cemetery. This adds to the already horrific state of the story. During her burial, everyone attended the event, although a vast majority only wanted to see the inside of the house, which they had not for the past ten years. He uses dark tone in this section in a way that most audiences would find baffling. She lived with his father, who did not let her live her life by her own will, but when the father died, she could not move on with life, she was trapped in her mind as well (Barnes 273).

Works Cited

Baldick, Chris. The Oxford book of gothic tales. OUP, 2009.

Barnes, Daniel R. "Faulkner's Miss Emily and Hawthorne's Old Maid." Studies in Short Fiction 9.4 (1972): 373.

Faulkner, William, John Carradine, and Anjelica Huston. A rose for Emily. Paderborn, De: Verlag F. Schoningh, 1958.

Mellard, James M. "Faulkner's Miss Emily and Blake's" Sick Rose":" Invisible Worm,"" Nachtraglichkeit", And Retrospective Gothic." Faulkner Journal 2.1 (1986): 37-45.