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Caroline Worrell
Mrs. Pettay
ENG 112
9 May 2016
Faulkners Fallen Monument
Southerner William Faulkner, poses a story in post-Civil War America about a woman
and her struggle with loss and societal pressures. A Rose for Emily, when analyzed through a
more formalistic lens, shows reoccurring patterns in imagery and other forms of figurative
language. Faulkner was purposeful in his use of figurative language to reveal significant facts
and clues about who Miss Emily was. In A Rose for Emily, Faulkners deliberate use of
imagery describing Miss Emily, her surroundings and her losses characterizes the gradual
deterioration of her physical and mental state.
The way Faulkner describes Miss Emilys home illustrates a kind of metaphor for her
personal and internal struggles. Specifically, his use of dust tells a story all on its own. In the
beginning of the story, Faulkner merely hints that Miss Emilys home smelled of dust.
However, that escalated then to a faint dust rose. He goes from simply the idea or thought of
dust, to an actual manifestation of it. Faulkner continues to develop the imagery by emphasizing
more and more dust. By the end of the short story, Faulkner states that the house [was] filled
with dust and concludes with a description of an even coating of the patient and biding
dust. The gradual increase in the amount of dust in Miss Emilys home is parallel to the
decrease of her physical and mental stability.
Audrey Binder, the author of Uncovering the Past: The Role of Dust Imagery in A
ROSE FOR EMILY, had an interesting take on Faulkners dust metaphor. Binder states, The

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manner in which dust covers the objects (and people) in Emilys archaic home represents the
obscuring of past events. Unlike decay, which changes and erodes what exists, dust covers but
does not ruin. She explains how Faulkner uses the dust metaphor to show the obscurities of
events in Miss Emilys life. Connecting to the previous idea that there was a significance in the
fact that the dust gradually accumulates, Binders ideas imply that the dust represents the
obscurity of her life and the towns people eventually seeing her life for what it is, despite what
her looks already illustrate.
Faulkner deliberately describes Miss Emilys appearance in extreme detail to enforce the
idea that her physical appearance is representative of the breakdown of her personal life and
mental state. At each point in her life, Faulkner provides a clear picture of what Miss Emily
looked like at the time. Since the story has flashbacks, it is not in complete chronological order.
However, if it was in order, it would begin with the picture of her father and her as a slender
figure in white in the background. At this point in her life, her father was still alive and although
Miss Emily was oppressed by his smothering rule, this was her in her most healthy and stable
state. Following her fathers death, Faulkner explains that the townspeople believed she was
sick for a while and when they saw her next, "her hair was cut short, making her look like a
girlsort of tragic and serene. Now with her father dead, Miss Emily is exhibiting minor
changes in appearance. Much like her mental state, her appearance isnt completely ruined, just a
little tarnished. Faulkner continues to illustrate her mental decline through her relationship with
Homer Baron. When Miss Emily goes to purchase the poison used to kill Homer, she is
described as thinner than usual, with haughty black eyes[and] eye sockets as you would
imagine a lighthouse keepers face ought to look. This appearance is the last time she even
remotely looks like herself, representing the final straw in her mental stability breaking loose.

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The next time Miss Emily is seen, after years and years of no human contact other than Tobe, she
is described as a small, fat woman in black[and] her eyes [were] lost in the fatty ridges of
her face, looked like two small pieces of coal pressed into a lump of dough Although it was
unbeknownst to the reader, Homer is now long gone and so is Miss Emilys mind.
Writer Xie Qun of the journal, Canadian Social Science, also shares the same
interpretation of Faulkners descriptive language regarding Miss Emilys appearance. He states,
The chronological organization of Emily's portraits visually imprints the changes occurring
throughout her life. In reflection, one will think of the different phases the character undergoes
through her life... demonstrat[ing] Emilys change of physical appearance and the worsening of
her mental state Qun however, highlights on Miss Emilys Fathers appearance in comparison
to hers as well. He uses the depiction of her father in the portrait with the horse whip in hand and
Miss Emily looking innocent in the back as a source for much of Miss Emilys heartbreak and
mental problems.
Lastly, Miss Emilys mental fallout was heavily characterized by her losses, explicitly
depicted by Faulkner. Throughout the entirety of the story, Miss Emily is faced with severe loss.
First, she has the only man and family member in her life, ripped from her: her father. He was the
center of her universe, considering no one else was allowed to fulfill that spot. Her father was all
she had ever know in her small town and when he died, Miss Emily began to unwind. It was a
downhill slope from there. Her next loss immediately following her fathers death, was his
money. The Griersons were known as a well-to-do family around town, however, it was
apparent that her father owed money to the town that he simply didnt have. When he died, the
little money Emilys father actually had remaining was not left to her. As if losing her father
wasnt enough, now she has the burden of her familys finances lingering overhead. These first

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two losses set the tone for the remainder of Miss Emilys life. Scarred by the losses of her father
and wealth, when someone good like Homer Baron waltzes into her life, she does everything in
her power to ensure she does not lose him too. Ironically, her idea of securing him in her life is to
kill him and keep his dead body in her bed for 40 years. And, whilst all this turmoil is going on,
Miss Emily subconsciously loses her only form of identity, her beautiful, slender appearance.
Mary Williamson, author of, , has an interesting psychoanalytical explanation for
why Miss Emilys life went off the rails so quickly, simply from the loss of her father.
Williamson explains that abuse comes in many forms between father and daughter and this abuse
causes significant damage to the daughters psychotic state. As she explains through her
experiences with clients, two in particular resemble that of Miss Emilys situation with her father.
Williamson states that, ...In one case[a] father showed an obvious jealousy of his daughters
having boyfriends and became overly controlling. In another case my clients father encouraged
an exclusive closeness to his daughter and then left home for a year to live with a girlfriend,
leaving my client enable to trust any relationship she made. These two clients experiences
reflect similarly to Miss Emilys experiences with her father. Although Miss Emily was never
allowed to date, her father still had an apparent overly controlling manner about himself that
clearly created a dependency between Miss Emily and him. In Williamsons second clients
experience, the dad created a strong bond with the daughter on purpose and then left
unexpectedly. By never allowing Miss Emily to fraternize with other people, he inadvertently
created a strong dependency of Emily on him, resembling the exclusive closeness
Williamsons client experienced. When he died unexpectedly, not only was Miss Emily lost, but
she had serious issues trusting anyone. She had issues even with Homer, who she loved so much,
yet she couldnt trust him enough to stay with her, so she felt she had to kill him. Williamsons

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analysis of the effects of fatherly absence or over presence explains much of the losses Miss
Emily had to go through, and the actions she took after the fact.
Whether it be the metaphor implied by the gradual accumulation of dust in her home, the
parallels between her appearance and mental state, or her compilation of losses, Faulkners
descriptive language sends a message to the reader about who Miss Emily is. It is important to
analyze Faulkners piece, A Rose for Emily, through a formalistic lens. In order to understand
the events in this story, one must take into consideration the fact that Faulkner deliberately used
imagery to illustrate patterns of strife and personal conflict within Miss Emily. Only then can a
reader begin to understand the complex life of Miss Emily and her twisted motives.

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Works Cited
Binder, Aubrey. "Uncovering the Past: The Role of Dust Imagery in A ROSE FOR EMILY." The
Explicator 70.1 (2012): 5-7. Web. 10 May 2016.
Qun, Xie. "Analysis of the Changing Portraits in "A Rose for Emily." Canadian Social Science. 3.2
(2007): 66-69. Apr. 2007. Web. 14 May 2016.
Williamson, Mary. "The Importance of Fathers in Relation to Their Daughters' Psychosexual
Development." Psychodynamic Practice 10.2 (2004): 207-19. Web. 14 May 2016.