A Rose for Emily

The central character in William Faulkner’s "A Rose for Emily" is Emily Grierson. Throughout the reading, Emily displays strange behavior that would cause one to question her mental state. In the text, we are told that Emily had a history of mental illness in her family, but we are not given the specifics. Faulkner also doesn’t directly express that Emily has a mental disease, but there is cause for speculation. In my opinion, Emily’s father thinking no one was good enough for his daughter contributed to Emily’s mental state and downfall.

In the eyes of Emily’s father, no one was good enough for his daughter. Potential suitors were rejected because they didn’t meet the father’s standards. So, it should come to no surprise that Emily was thirty and single. I don’t believe it was until after her father’s death that Emily realized she was truly alone. Emily’s father did leave her the house, but that was all she had. Alone in a big house with no husband or family, I doubt Emily was happy. The sadness must have taken a toll on Emily because she went out less.

Even though she went out less, in due time Emily started dating Homer Barron, a Yankee, who liked men. Why would a woman court a closeted gay man? Loneliness is the reason; Emily wanted companionship, she wanted to feel loved as every woman does. Emily courting Homer even though he is gay shows she doesn’t have all her marbles. If Emily’s father had let her date, there is a chance she would have been married by the time of his death, and then there would have been no need for Homer. Since Emily wasn’t given the opportunity to date, she had to settle for Homer, a gay day laborer.

Emily never had a man to call her own until Homer, so it’s no surprise she didn’t want him to get away. So what does one do when one wishes to be with one's companion forever? Kill him, or at least that’s what Emily did. The fact that Emily killed Homer for her personal gain shows she had psychological issues.

If Emily’s father standards weren’t so high, she could have lived a normal life and possibly found a suitor with whom she could enjoy life. She could have been like everyone else in town instead of the talk of the town. Unfortunately, Emily wasn’t afforded that opportunity due to her father’s decisions, so she had to cope with the way things were. The way Emily dealt with her father’s decisions ultimately led to her downfall of dying a lonely old woman.