A Rose for Emily: Evil that signifies Emily

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“A Rose for Emily”: Evil that signifies Emily A rose is assumed to mean a beautiful flower characterized by prickly stems, pinnate leaves, and fragrant flowers with five petals that can range from white, yellow, often red or pink. A rose however can mean pain, sorrow, and even evil. The first sentence of the short story A Rose for Emily introduces one to Miss Emily Grierson who is referred to as a fallen Monument (206). She was a last reminder of the old south and an inherited obligation for the town. As humans we all know that what is born must die but for Miss Emily on the other hand did not believe this so much and certain symbols prove this. The old once white house is only one of the many symbols that suggest this idea. It was big squarish frame house decorated with cupolas and spires and scrolled balconies in the heavily lightsome style of seventies, set on what had been our most select street (206). A house of dust and disuse with a close dank smell is like a neglected tomb that no one visits with overgrown flower and weeds. Dust meaning old, unclear, and things that are hidden. The smell symbolizes closed up, shut in, or even hidden. This is the way Emily is handling the death of her father by not being active with the outside world. The Negro servant in Miss Emily's house lingers like a reminder of the banished institution of slavery. He was only there to cater to her needs. The Negro led them into the parlor (206). When the Negro opened the blinds of one window they could see that the leather was cracked; and when they sat down, a faint dust rose sluggishly about their thighs (207). During slavery Negros knew their places. Everything that was expected was done without question. With this being said no words ever had to be exchanged between the
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