William Faulkner molds "A Rose for Emily" into a Southern Gothic piece of work as he slowly reveals and describes the gruesome character of Emily herself. Emily is very mysterious, which is cleverly exhibited through the eyes of the narrator. The narrator and the rest of the town are always watching Emily and her home to try and figure out just what exactly goes on inside of there. All they ever really know is what they observe and assume to be true. Emily house reeks of some unknown smell that is speculated to be the smell of some rotting, dead animal carcass, but yet again, no one knows for sure. Upon finally learning just how Emily murdered her lover and then kept his body on her bed so she could still lie with him after death, is like a slap in the face from the hand of grotesqueness itself. Yet there is still this heir of mystery about her, even after her death. The entire town thought that she had "evidently" shut off the entire second floor of her home; but after her funeral, they find the skeleton and they "...noticed that in the second pillow was the indentation of a head. One of us lifted something from it, and leaving forward, that faint and invisible dust dry and acrid in the nostrils, we saw a long strand of iron-grey hair. (p. 5). Even the mere fact that they waited until "...Miss Emily was decent in the ground before they..." broke into her private room implies that they still felt a bit of fear and uneasiness towards her (p. 5).
Faulkner is clearly making Emily symbolic to the traditional way of life in the story. In the beginning he even refers to Emily and her home as a "fallen monument" (p. 1). Emily doesn't believe that she has to pay any taxes because of a deal that she and Colonel Sartoris made years ago. The new men that have been running the town since Colonel Sartoris's death ten years previously have many troubles and stand offs with Miss Emily when trying to get her to pay her taxes. Because she is somewhat of a "monument" in the town, the men finally let it go. This bit of bowing down to the historical and traditional character could be viewed as a sign of respect, but I think it was more out of fear and utter exasperation. One thing is certain though, Miss Emily was tough and didn't back down from anyone--man or woman.
There are a few instances where racial and gender issues are illuminated by Faulkner. He constantly tells how the Negro man "...going in and out with the market basket" (p. 5). No matter how terrible and frightening Miss Emily was, that house servant never stopped working for her and being faithful to her. The men of the town don't show him any respect and refer to him as "...that nigger of hers" (p. 2). However, this black man is clearly putting up with a lot more than any of them ever have from Miss Emily, so he seems to be much more diligent and brave than they are. The women in the town even go as far as to blame the stench coming from the house on him when they say "...just as if a man-any man-could keep a kitchen properly" (p. 2). Here, the women are not referring to his race at all, but merely that any man would not be capable of maintaining a clean kitchen and home like a woman could.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Gothic vs. Southern Gothic
Gothic literature is a very unique style of writing. All Gothic works can be characterized by very specific elements that they include. Examples of a few of these unique elements are horror elements, supernatural events , ghosts, villains, mysterious castles, and crumbling ruins. As these stories began to evolve, authors started to introduce more psychological aspects, like in Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, where Robert Louis Stevenson intricately describes the horrors associated with a split personality disorder. Gothic literature also often illuminates some of the distrust and darker sides that are often associated with the Catholic faith. (Buzzle.com)
Southern Gothic is often referred to as a sub-genre of its parent, Gothic literature. Much like Gothic literature, the Southern Gothic includes supernatural, ironic, and unusual events to help shape and mold the base of its story line. However, unlike the traditional Gothic writings, Southern Gothic novels focus more on highlighting social issues like racism and white supremacy but in a much more subtle way. They would use scenarios such as a damsel in distress or a heroic knight and twist them into a grotesque or deeply flawed character. This allowed the authors to have more of a range of what they could and could not say because they were then highlighting trouble Southern sociological issues, but not in a very blatant and obvious way. (Wikipedia.com)
Eudora Welty's "The Petrified Man" is classified as a Southern Gothic short story because of her portrayal of the women's changing roles in society. Leota, who is married and works to support her bum of a husband, demonstrates an inversion of the typically accepted male and female roles. Mrs. Fletcher is more of a representation of the traditional woman. She is unhappily married, pregnant, and doesn't like kids, yet she remains in her marriage because that is what is socially expected of her. Mrs. Pike represents a more positive image of a modern woman. She is the sole source of economic power in her marriage, and she also has this strange type of intuition that she possesses. It is clear that the other women in the story are a bit jealous of her.
In Flannery O'Connor's story "Greenleaf" we also see evidence for it being considered a Southern Gothic work. For example, Mrs. May who proclaims herself as a devout Christian is actually a hypocritical, pathetic snob. Basically someone we might refer to as a "Sunday Christian". Mr Greenleaf, one of the men in the story, is actually lazy, uneducated, and seems very shifty all of the time. This is completely opposite of how Southern gentlemen are usually portrayed in Romantic literature. Yet, Mr. Greenleaf is paired with one of the most positive characters in the story, Mrs. Greenleaf. Mrs. Greenleaf is very strong in her Christian faith and treats it as a daily ritual and spiritual faith telling, which is how all Christians try to portray themselves.
Southern Gothic is often referred to as a sub-genre of its parent, Gothic literature. Much like Gothic literature, the Southern Gothic includes supernatural, ironic, and unusual events to help shape and mold the base of its story line. However, unlike the traditional Gothic writings, Southern Gothic novels focus more on highlighting social issues like racism and white supremacy but in a much more subtle way. They would use scenarios such as a damsel in distress or a heroic knight and twist them into a grotesque or deeply flawed character. This allowed the authors to have more of a range of what they could and could not say because they were then highlighting trouble Southern sociological issues, but not in a very blatant and obvious way. (Wikipedia.com)
Eudora Welty's "The Petrified Man" is classified as a Southern Gothic short story because of her portrayal of the women's changing roles in society. Leota, who is married and works to support her bum of a husband, demonstrates an inversion of the typically accepted male and female roles. Mrs. Fletcher is more of a representation of the traditional woman. She is unhappily married, pregnant, and doesn't like kids, yet she remains in her marriage because that is what is socially expected of her. Mrs. Pike represents a more positive image of a modern woman. She is the sole source of economic power in her marriage, and she also has this strange type of intuition that she possesses. It is clear that the other women in the story are a bit jealous of her.
In Flannery O'Connor's story "Greenleaf" we also see evidence for it being considered a Southern Gothic work. For example, Mrs. May who proclaims herself as a devout Christian is actually a hypocritical, pathetic snob. Basically someone we might refer to as a "Sunday Christian". Mr Greenleaf, one of the men in the story, is actually lazy, uneducated, and seems very shifty all of the time. This is completely opposite of how Southern gentlemen are usually portrayed in Romantic literature. Yet, Mr. Greenleaf is paired with one of the most positive characters in the story, Mrs. Greenleaf. Mrs. Greenleaf is very strong in her Christian faith and treats it as a daily ritual and spiritual faith telling, which is how all Christians try to portray themselves.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Women vs. Men
I think the reason that Marlow tells Kurtz's fiance that his dying words were her name is because of the stigma that has always been placed on women. Most men, especially in previous centuries, believe that women are much more fragile than men and should be protected from the harshness of the world. Marlow was going along with this stereotype when he lied to Kurtz's fiance about Kurtz's dying mantra and his own relationship with Kurtz. Conrad only helps to enhance this preconceived thought by the way that he presents Kurtz's fiance. He describes her entrance as merely "...a pale head, floating towards..." Marlow in the sitting room. Conrad continues on to make her seem so gullible and uninformed--he makes it impossible for Marlow to have ever told the truth to this frail, mourning woman. The mere fact that Conrad does not even reveal her name to the reader slaps her in the face with the inferiority that men always chain to women. As Kurtz's fiance continues to speak, she reveals that she knew Kurtz better than anyone else on this earth--or so she thinks. Everything that she is telling Marlow about Kurtz is in complete contradiction with what Kurtz had surely morphed into while he was out in the darkness. Because of society's thoughts of women being unable to handle the realities of the world outside of their own, Marlow simply lets her believe that Kurtz had continued on as a fine and upstanding gentleman. When Kurtz fiance proclaims that "[m]en looked up to him,--his goodness shone in every act" it is impossible not to think that she sounds like a complete imbecile when we think back on what Kurtz had truly become. He had turned into a monster who slaughter humans and animals alike for merely the chance to obtain more ivory and money for himself. He was simply a greedy man. Why should Marlow ruin that blissful dream that she still had of him in her mind?
This idea of women not being able to handle the same trials and upsets as men can, is very similar to the treatment that was exhibited in Electra. This is a recurring theme throughout all works of literature from earlier times. All men believed that women could never be equal to men in both physical and emotional aspects. Yet women were still considered to be the only present force that could turn a house into a home; which is ironically still very important to men. If women were treated more equally in the past and also today, they might be more willing to provide the nurture and care that men still so desperately need. In my mind, that is more power than men will ever have in their lifetime.
This idea of women not being able to handle the same trials and upsets as men can, is very similar to the treatment that was exhibited in Electra. This is a recurring theme throughout all works of literature from earlier times. All men believed that women could never be equal to men in both physical and emotional aspects. Yet women were still considered to be the only present force that could turn a house into a home; which is ironically still very important to men. If women were treated more equally in the past and also today, they might be more willing to provide the nurture and care that men still so desperately need. In my mind, that is more power than men will ever have in their lifetime.
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