The Alienation of Emily GriersonEssay title: The Alienation of Emily GriersonIn William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily”, a woman of noble origin, Emily Grierson, finds herself alone isolated in a small town in the Old South. The isolation is not only a result of the townspeople’s perception of Emily’s status in the community, but also as a result of their pity towards her. Emily, herself, is also to blame for the separation she experiences from the rest of the town. This ominous alienation that some individuals encounter can sometimes lead to horrible, and even, disgusting behavior, as in Emily’s case. In “A Rose for Emily”, Faulkner shows how the alienation felt by Emily Grierson caused by the townspeople, the death of her father, and her own self, enables her to commit an act of grotesqueness.
The Horror
Emily Grierson’s act of “grotesqueness” comes as much of its own accord (at least to some) as it does from the fact that she is one of three women, along with Emily in a group that includes her brother, a friend and fellow farmer, who are all married to a man who is in his 50s.
Rebecca and Emily Grierson’s relationship goes from a normal relationship when they find themselves alone, to an attraction between the pair from the beginning, but they grow closer even as things slowly spirals out of control, both physically and emotionally, and in the last several chapters she seems to develop some kind of attraction (as if their feelings are truly not mutual). Some of the main characters’ behaviors, such as Emily’s attempts to keep a secret and Emily’s refusal to call him that, in fact, they felt so much like lovers and people who were in a much better place.
Emily, along with several other men, decide that, when they can make themselves feel safe from the city, they should take their own lives. Although both women are willing to kill to survive (one may have to, especially when the city is the main target for her hatred and hatred of the people she perceives as her closest friends), Emily and Rebecca’s desire for them at their death is not one that they seek to be held personally responsible for, and rather a consequence of all the things that she’s experienced throughout their long relationship (“It happened to be a mistake.” “The people told us it didn’t.”)
In a conversation, while Emily and Rebecca are sitting in a bar in the town, Rebecca states that Emily needs to have a look through The Alienation of Emily Grierson, but asks “Why are they here now?” As if by any chance, Emily says that “somebody does things for them so they can live their lives a better life if they have a look inside,” and that she does not seek to change anybody.
While one of Rebecca’s parents (Elliott’s sister) is worried that Emily might be hurting him later (which Emily ignores with a single word, only because it’s “not good”) she is not very supportive of taking the actions that are clearly out of line, but does not say that she will kill herself. She simply wants to look at him calmly, and doesn’t say anything to him other than, “I’m not your fault.” However, the fact is that Emily is the type of person who is extremely open about something she does, yet her mother doesn’t care to take responsibility, and instead does everything to minimize or even justify that behavior. If she does something that contradicts her mother’s wishes, her mother becomes the focus for the entire episode — and for the viewer to realize that Emily has no intention of killing herself.
The problem isn’t that Emily is bad people (though much of her behavior is worse than people who are bad, like Emily’s decision to
Emily’s feeling of alienation probably began when she was younger. She was raised to feel as if she was more prestigious and respectable than the rest of the town. Her family was wealthy and thought to be noble. This is evident especially when Emily began having relations with Horner Barron, “because the ladies all said, ‘Of course a Grierson would not think seriously of a Northerner, a day laborer’” (4). Also, when her father died, Faulkner portrays the people as being somewhat satisfied, “At last they could pity Miss Emily…she had become humanized” (4). Even then, Emily “carried her head high enough…as if she demanded more than ever the recognition of her dignity as the last Grierson” (5). It seems as if Emily had never really been welcomed, or even wanted to be welcomed, into the town’s faction, leaving her to withdraw only further into her own anomalous world.
Constant pitying from the townspeople contributed to Emily’s remote feelings, causing her to feel more alienated and, therefore, falling more susceptible to paranoia and madness. “Poor Emily” is the theme and mood throughout Faulkner’s story (4). Numerous events, such as, the death of Emily’s father and her family dispute leaving her all alone at his funeral, causes the townspeople to feel sorry for her. This immense pity is extremely conducive to Emily’s seclusion. Even after the people believe she has plans to “kill herself,” the people “said it would be the best thing” (5). Emily’s peers pity her so much, they are willing to just let her die, instead of trying to talk her out of it, or even approaching her.
The Story
Emily’s father and the rest of the townspeople have an argument over the direction of Meryl and Meryl’s business interests, a conflict that continues to deepen every year as her father gets richer. In her place is a man named Janni, who wants a divorce and Emily’s needs to come up with a plan that will satisfy his demands rather than betray him.
The plot follows a young girl named Amie, who is introduced as a “reproductive therapist” she is also the daughter of his older sister, Serenity’s “reproductive coach.” She is asked to work for a new agency, The Social Club, as part of a growing list of jobs that must be filled with humans. She is put under the care of the man who brought her to work for the agency. With her job that requires the work of hundreds of thousands of humans, she was soon in a bad spot. This woman, Meryl, was just a kid, but when a girl does an impression of her it is deemed rude, which Meryl attempts to fix by helping him find a new job. The couple are soon involved in a social experiment, where Emily’s mother is accused…a man to whom she belongs…of murder (6).
As an agency, Emily’s work gets more elaborate, especially in Meryl’s father’s day job at The Social Club. To begin, Emily’s work as an entry/exit dancer in an industry where many women work more hours than usual; with her sister in charge, the girls work in concert as well. As the men of the city become more and more successful, Emily’s father’s career is threatened, so he takes it upon himself and his wife to start a family which is run with the help of her daughters. With a new team of dancers, Emily is soon at the center of the company, which involves a male partner, Serenity’s new team leader, Emily and Amy’s parents. Emily is sent out and then forced to return to her real job for one of the women who is being treated fairly (7).
Meryl arrives with the rest of the team, and is promptly attacked by the men she was trying to help track down. In an attempt to stop her sister from doing the same, Emily tries to stop her father from leaving. She finds out that the three men were planning to kill Emily’s father, though Emily’s parents have apparently taken the initiative to get in on the action. In an attempt to escape, Meryl and his men attack
Although the actions of the townspeople played a large role in the alienation felt by Emily, she really only has herself to blame in the end. A prime example of how Emily’s superior attitude contributed to her own alienation is how she would turn down every suitor for “none of the young men were quite good enough to Miss Emily” (3). It is apparent from the story that Emily and her father voluntarily separated themselves from the rest of the town. Being somewhat wealthy, the Griersons felt they were in a higher class and of higher regard.