The Reconstruction Era in the Deep South was a time of extreme social turmoil. With the abolition of slavery, previously socially elite plantation owners no longer had slaves to maintain their homes and crops. Many of these aristocrats fell financially, some even had to work in their own fields, and this change in traditional roles began to blur social lines. The societal norms of the pre-civil war era were being challenged.  In the short story, “A Rose for Emily”, the author, William Faulkner, uses the historical era and regional context to add significance to the refusal of the main character, Emily Grierson, to adapt to the changing times.

   During this time period the South was in a critical adapting stage, with the war ending and African Americans who once were slaves being freed. The story is narrated by a townsperson who refers to himself and the town as “we.”  From the context of the story, it appears this townsperson was part of the older generation, and is respectful of Emily and her historically elite social standing in the town. Soon after her father’s passing, Colonel Sartoris, one of the town leaders, created a story about Emily’s father being owed money by the town in order to prevent Emily the embarrassment of not being able to afford the tax bill. A generation later, the town leaders issued Emily a tax notice which later she returned and refused to pay. Emily was in her sixties at the time, and she insisted that she does not believe she owes taxes and demands she isn’t required to pay.  She tells the townsmen, that they should check with Colonel Sartoris, despite the Colonel being deceased for ten years.  Ins spite of the world changing around her, she continues to be set in her ways, and does not accept the fact that she no longer should receive special privileges. The men collecting taxes are not under the same generation as the old South norm. 

There are many traditions and expectations a woman from the South was expected to follow.  A socially elite person was expected to “court” and marry someone of their same social status. After Emily’s father passed she began to see Homer Barron, a Yankee labor foreman who preferred spending his time with men. Emily again ignored social expectations by being seen with Barron. The town was very upset that she forgot, “Nobleese Oblige, which means “Whoever claims to be noble must conduct himself nobly.” (Dictionary.com) The town was so upset that they called her kinsfolk from Alabama to intervene. 

A horrible odor outside Emily’s home alarmed all the townspeople.  The Old South and the Old Order in Jefferson, Mississippi conflicts in the perception of how to deal with Emily’s odor outside her home, the newer generation wanted to mandate she get rid of the odor however the “graybeards” (Faulkner 4) on the Board of Alderman insisted Emily’s situation be handled a little more delicately. “Men like this operated under a code of chivalry that was extremely protective of white women.” Judge Stevens refused to allow them to “accuse a lady to her face of smelling bad.” (Faulkner 3) Instead, the townsmen snuck around her house and sprinkled lime everywhere. 

Despite the feelings and opinions of the townspeople, Emily is a major icon in the town.  Feared by some, pitied by others, she no longer is held in reverence like she was when her father was alive.  However, her traditional social status still allows her to get away with purchasing deadly arsenic without even giving the druggist the faintest of ideas why she wanted to purchase the lethal poison.  This kind of social bypass would never be allowed today, but Emily is treated differently allowed to purchase one of the deadliest poisons available without even the slightest cause. The narrator leads us to believe that the townspeople almost felt a sense of relief after Emily’s purchase of the arsenic. They believed she was going to kill herself, and that they would soon hear that she was deceased.  The torch had been passed to the newer leaders of the town, and Emily had become a burden and a nuisance to the town.  We can only assume, that Emily used this arsenic to poison Homer Barron, when his corpse is found 40 years later dried and lying in Emily’s bridal suite.  Again, the time period of this short story, and the social status Emily held allowed her to continue to live without regards to rules or laws of the town.

Emily’s duty to Homer whom the townsfolk think she is taking care of, gets away with murder because of the time period and having a high social status. Women in the south in the 1930’s were supposed to act and think a certain way. Most women were homemakers and were given the expectation of having the house spotless when the husband returned from work. The man of house was expected to come home to a meal sitting on the table with a happy wife; ready to serve his needs. The women in the time period needed to look presentable regardless where they were during the day. Although women could work during the thirties it was frowned upon because of the gender status at the time. Men had the status of being strong, and the money maker and women were fragile and un-educated. There could not have been a more perfect time for Emily to cover up the murder. Emily did not have a job and made her African American slave to go fetch groceries which explains why it was not mysterious why she never left the house. The only question anyone ever thought of was “Where is Homer?”

William Faulkner was born and lived in a small town in Mississippi, and came from a family that once owned a plantation.  The history of his family and of the South were his inspiration for his writings. (William Faulkner-Biographical) Faulkner understood the social elite attitude and the opportunities that status allowed in the Deep South.  Faulkner’s writings take place in the South, but he, unlike Emily, understood the difference between the norms and culture of the old and new South.  The historical era where A Rose for Emily takes place and Emily’s social status in the Old South, allows her to commit a horrendous act upon another human, with no confrontation or consequences.  The townspeople of the old order, refused to acknowledge her eccentricity and her obvious deteriorated mental state, which allowed her to carry out her crime.  Emily lived her life in the past, refused to accept her reduced social status and felt herself to be above the law.  Ultimately, Emily won.  There were “many presences which converged in attempts to defeat her – the town, her father, and Homer Barron. But she has ultimately “vanquished them, horse and foot.” “On the victor Faulkner bestows a rose of tribute, a rose for Emily.” (Web Design & Support, Southeast Missouri State University)
