Exploring the Traces of Modern Civilization in William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily”

【Abstract】As one of the modern American novelists， William Faulkner has enjoyed a high prestige. “A Rose for Emily”， one of Faulkners most famous short stories shows a clear picture of the change of Southern society after the American Civil War. As the Civil War came to an end， the modern civilization in the north exerted a powerful influence over the South. It grew rapidly and at the same time affected the South recklessly.

【Key words】William Faulkner； “A Rose for Emily”； modern civilization

1. Introduction

“A Rose for Emily”， as one of William Faulkners most famous short stories， depicts the tragic story of Miss Emily. Before the death of her father， Emily behaved like a fair lady who lived in the shadow of her father. After that， she began to challenge the traditional values that her family had long believed. She fell in love with a northerner who had no intention to marry her. Finally， out of despair， she killed his love and lived with his body for the rest of her life.

2. Traces of modern civilization and their influences

With the development of modern civilization， the traditional American South suffered much from its powerful force both externally and internally. Numerous traces of modern civilization were left over by its powerful and irrevocable force. Thus， in this section， a detailed analysis of the traces and its effects will be covered.

2.1 Its influence on peoples values

At the beginning of the story， the unnamed narrator gives a detailed description of Miss Emily's funeral. As is stated in the text， all the people in town were present for the funeral. The narrator describes the motivation for the towns attendance， “the men through a sort of respectful affection for a fallen monument， the women mostly out of curiosity to see the inside of her house”. From these descriptions， most people do not feel for Emily in her sorrow let alone have a sense of sympathy. The only reason they are present is that their hearts are brimming over with curiosity about Miss Emilys life of privacy. “No individual had seen the inside of her house， with the exception of Miss Emilys ‘Negro servant， in the last ten years leading up to her death”. During all this years， Emily and her life remain a mystery. Curious the townspeople are， they do not have a slightest idea of making friends with Emily or even giving her some help when she is in trouble. Therefore， they are one of the factors that lead to Emily tragedy.

2.2 Its influence on social systems

The 20th century in the American South is a time of radical change and a time of ringing out the old and ushering in the new. In the story， Emily is a traditional aristocrat. At first， she holds all the characteristics of what a fair lady possesses. She is obedient to her father and does not have her own free will to pursue her own true love. However， after the death of her father， Emilys female consciousness is awakening. She fights bravely against the double oppressions both from the public and from her own principle. In the end， she murders Barron， which is an extreme way to be with him in perpetuity. At this point， Emilys free will gives into full play in order to get what she wants. However， this free will is absolutely against the Ladies System. All in all， this kind of traditional system is undergoing subtle changes under the influences of modern civilization.

2.3 Its influence on people

It is known to us all that everyone changes with the changing times. The author describes Emilys eyes as “two small pieces of coal pressed into a lump”. Coal is the product of industrial civilization. In this sense， Emily has been industrialized. Also， the author addresses Emily as “Miss Emily”， which is an appellation for woman. However， when the author depicts her appearance， he uses the expression of “a small， fat woman in black”. From this， no characteristics of a fair lady are possessed by Miss Emily. She almost loses all the striking traits of a woman. Wandering through this new era， Emily is in a dilemma. She is tortured by the new society so much that she does not look like a woman， or even a human being.

3. Conclusion

Through the analysis of this short story， the traces of modern civilization can be seen everywhere. This traces are signs left over by the modern world. They have wielded enormous clout in this small town. Besides that， Faulkner has great concern over this radical change. He has searched his mind for a clear answer， but can not find one in the end.

References：

[1]Cunliffe，Marcus.The New History of American Literature since 1900.New York：Peter Redrick Books，1988.

[2]常耀信.美國文學簡史[M].天津：南開大學出版社，1999.

作者簡介：趙陽（1990-），男，漢族，山東濱州人，在讀研究生，研究方向：語料庫翻譯學。