A Rose for Emily: a Story Daughter Loving Her Father

The short story “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner has many other characters than just Emily. The other characters help contribute to her tragedy with Homer. The tragedy in “A Rose for Emily” was that she was a lonely lady that turned into a lonely woman. Her dad was one of the main reasons for this. Other contributions to the tragedy are that of the towns people, they gave her what she wanted without questions, making her custom to getting anything. When she wanted something she had received it then and there.

The main reason for such a tragedy in “A Rose for Emily”, was that her Dad had spoiled her from the very beginning. When Miss Emily had wanted something she got it. Her father wanted her to have the best upbringing and the best everything for his little girl. He also set the mood for the tragic event in the story because any beau she had come to call on her, he would run them off. No one was good enough for his little girl. When Miss Emily’s dad passed on she was left a sum of money and respect from the entire town. The way the town treats her after her father passes is very interesting to how they think about her. The whole town think, she is crazy old hag and just put up with her.

in the critical analysis by Milinda Scwab, she states that one of the reasons Miss Emily has had such a tragedy in her life is she lost time.”When we first meet Miss Emily, she carries in a pocket somewhere within her clothing an ‘invisible watch ticking at the end of a gold chain (Scwab 215)” By this she is meaning that Miss Emily Grierson is fixed on passing time and the past, then why does she need a watch? The watch and chain represents that she is able to control her own time and matters. For instance when the alderman comes to get her taxes she simply does not pay them. Her father did the town so well that she believed that his doing went for her also. The way every one gives her what she wants with out arguing is respect for an elder.

A southern belle from a good family was put on a pedestal in those days. That is one reason that people believe Miss Emily murdered Homer. One, he was from the north and not many people would notice him being dead. Second he did cause some uprising in the town when her father died. Her father never let her make her own decisions and when Homer came into her life she fell in love within a year. Also with the towns people not being pleased with her being thirty and single, when she found Homer she was determined to keep him at whatever the cost. When he was gone while her cousins were there she thought she had lost him and when he returned she wanted to make sure that he was never going to leave her again. She finally wanted to use her power on someone else, the power that was used to control her life completely. Another reason Miss Emily killed Homer was to have security in her home. Her father had been there her entire life and with Homer there dead or alive she felt “safer”. All these factors contribute to her lonebetterliness and psychotic traits. The town just accepted her like she was and did not try and help her become .