Alienation In A Rose For Emily

The Alien in Jefferson
Before the reconstruction era, southerners relied greatly on their labor force for their abundant wealth and high social rankings. After the war, though, many plantation owners suffered a great deal from the loss of their slaves. During the reconstruction era, the south was evolving and modernizing, but some of the high-class society members struggled to conform to the new ways. The story, “A Rose For Emily,” by William Faulkner, was based on this changing time period. Emily Grierson’s father was a plantation owner, so they were seen as first class citizens. After her father’s death and her community’s modernization, Emily becomes profoundly alienated from her society. Since Emily Grierson’s high social class led to her alienation, the community relies on assumptions and gossip about Emily to keep up with her life. Because of Emily’s pretentious mindset, she alienates herself from her society in an attempt to uphold her social status. While Emily was growing up, her father taught her to believe that she was better than everyone else. The townspeople took note of this, as they “believed that the Griersons held themselves a little too high for what they really were. None of the young men were quite good enough for Miss Emily and such” (Faulkner 3). In doing this, Emily not only isolates herself from the community by making them feel inferior to her, but she also isolates herself from a possible husband. Since her father died, a male figure in her life