In A Rose for Emily, William Faulkner tells a story about a young women who is overwhelmingly influenced by her father. Her father controls her live and makes all of her decisions for her. Without him she could not do anything except stay at home. When her father dies, Emily has to confront a new life without her sponsor. Since she is not able to function without the presence of her father, it is hard for her to adapt and accept the truth. When Emilys father dies, women of the town call on her to offer their help, which is their custom when someone suffers a tragic loss.
Emily denies that as she meets them in front of her house with no emotion in her face. She sends them away as she considers her father still alive instead of being death. Her father controls all over her life; therefore, she couldnt accept the death of her father. In her thought, her father still exists in her house and he is the only one source that she can support to. Its time for her to make her decision herself. She spends majority of her time in the house where she feels comfortable and where her father still exists and protects her.
She decides to live herself in the house regardless of changes outside in the world. She could not escape from her father ghost shadow. Everything changes; nevertheless, she still lives with the past. For example, when a new age of city authorities in town visit her house in order to collect taxes they feel she own; she explains that: I have no taxes in Jefferson. Colonel Sartoris explained it to me. Yes, it is true; however, colonel Sartoris has been dead almost for ten years. There are two characters in this story described opposite to each other. They are Miss Emily and Mr. Homer.
Miss Emily is described as a short, fat, aged and mysterious woman. She is very stubborn lady and very hard to change; Miss Emily refuses modern change into her desolate life; for example, she refuses to allow attaching numbers on her door and a mailbox for free mail service. All her attitude is a result of her fathers over-control her when she was very young. On the other hand, Homer is a Yankee- a big dark, ready man, with big voice and eyes lighter the his face. Miss Emily represents for someone who lives in the South and couldnt accept the real thing that the North takes over the South after Civil War.
When the Negro opened the blinds of one window, they could see that the leather was cracked; and when they sat down, a faint dust rose sluggishly about their things, spinning with slow motes in the single sun ray is example of old thing. Emilys house with all old things represents the Old south, which has to face to a new modern generation. The plot of this story is mainly about Miss Emilys attitude. Miss Emily lives in the modern society but her attitude is about the past. She is dominated by her father. Because she is so influenced by her father, when he passes away and leaves her alone, she is so scared and cannot confront the truth.
She meets Homer, she feels balance in her life. He could be the one she can count on; however, she is still scared that he will leave her one day. Fears of Homers departure and of being left alone are reasons to make her poison hem and kill him. This is a way she can keep him with her forever. A neighbor saw the Negro man admit him at the kitchen door at dusk one evening. And thats the last we saw of Homer Barron Faulkner writes. Until her death, people find out the truth about Homers mysterious death. This is the climax of this story. The truth is discovered.