A Rose for Emily Review

Short Story Explication “A Rose for Emily”When Miss Emily Grierson died, our whole town went to her funeral. (Faulkner 78). This sentence is gripping to the story, it sets up the death of a young woman, and the reader to use their imagination. The story begins and ends with death and ends with death, the hardships of a mutilated soul. This sentence creates interest and suspense for the reader and a curiosity as to the ending. The writer’s description of Emily’s hair, to me, symbolizes Emily’s perceived strength and hardships. She is weak and often seems off in another world, she seems to think she does not need to pay taxes, and realistically just loses her grip on reality. Emily is emotionally torn, by her disdainful life, turning her into an isolated woman. She has been sheltered most of her life. She has no pride, due to the abuse, denial of life, a father that robbed her of all life experiences. Emily is more than just eccentric, she is a very sickly, eccentric necrophiliac and murderer. After discovering the gray hair on the pillow, the reader was troubled by everything she left behind. You feel sorry for Emily and her tragic story. Her neighbors complaining about the stench that is coming from her house; she has no idea what this event truly means, because the Judge, who asked to bring it to her attention, was uncomfortable, causing the entire town to pity her situation; along with the relationship with her father. As the story evolves, with the death of her father, and Emily is not able to cope, having the town to pity her once again, and bury the body for her. With her bizarre behavior, the stench from her house, and isolation; raises an eyebrow when she purchases arsenic from the local pharmacist. Piquing the reader’s interest in the tragedy that this story will end.Short Story Analysis This assignment is a 4-5 page analysis of one of the short stories discussed in class. You will have the opportunity to focus on an approach to a short story that most interests you and should consider writing on the same story that you chose for your explication.You could examine character development, theme, symbolism and plot development, or you might want to use some critical approaches. While you are not required to do research for this assignment, you are strongly encouraged to do so. Use the MLA format for all direct quotes from the story. Remember, your essay should not be a long paraphrase of the plot. Rather, in this essay you are giving your analytical reading of this story and so you should provide only a brief plot summary and then use direct quotes to emphasize particular aspects of the story that are important to the development of your thesis.Review the following pages in the anthology for further information on writing about fiction: 46-65 (46-62 in th 10th ed.) and 1663-93 (1557-90 in the 10th ed). Steps for Writing the Paper Choose and read the story The first step in your writing process should be to re-read the story you choose. Also consider rereading the discussion posts for this story. As you read, jot down questions that you have about the story. For example, with “A Father”—“What is the significance of the title? What really happens in the end?” You should also review the “Questions for Responsive Reading and Writing” in your textbook as a way to further your analysis. Make a note of the questions that most interest you and that seem to apply to the story you have chosen. You should also feel free to use any of the questions that follow the short stories as a way to guide your reading and writing process.Finally you should reread the story, but this time you should begin taking notes.You may want to make a photocopy of the story so that you can mark the actual text. Highlight or underline dialogue or language that stands out for you; mark moments in the plot that are crucial to the progression or completion of the story. Mark points in the story that simply baffle you. Repeating this process should lead you to an area to focus on. Pay special attention to the questions you had while reading; it is likely that the instincts you had that brought you to ask these questions will also guide you to an effective focus or thesis for your essayDevelop a working thesisRemember that a working thesis is not permanent. It can change. Its main purpose is to guide your drafting process, so that your writing is more focused.OutlineOnce you have crafted a strong, complex and original working thesis, review your notes on the story and create a rough outline that will give a possible structure to your paper. Use this outline as a guide as you write your rough draft. Be sure to give yourself enough time to review and revise your rough draft.