“A Rose for Emily” and “Paul’s Case”: Discontent With Life

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Comparison
Conclusion
Works Cited

Introduction

A rose for Emily and Paul’s case both convey stories of protagonists who were discontented with their lives and chose to defy society as a result of that discontentment. In ‘A rose for Emily’, the main character – Emily Grierson was born into a rich lineage and was a socialite. However, instead of embracing the aristocratic lifestyle, Emily chose to carve out her own identity and to pursue happiness based on what she wanted rather than what society dictated. This was the reason why she had a scandalous affair with a Yankee (Homer Barron) and did not care when the townspeople spoke against her relationship. Similarly, in “Paul’s case”, Paul – the protagonist – was also dissatisfied with his existence. He felt that there was more to life than what his hometown could offer him; a fact that prompted him to steal money from his employer and escape to New York (Faulkner, p. 44).

Comparison

A boy of Paul’s age was expected to attend school and obey authority. However, the Opera excited Paul more than class attendance and this caused him to behave inappropriately towards his teachers. The school’s teachers are very judgmental of Paul’s actions and the same can be said of Emily as well. Both characters suffer from a yearning for greater things. This caused them to defy the status quo in pursuit of greater fulfillment

Another similarity between these two characters is that both of them grew up in dysfunctional homes where they were never really understood. Emily had a strict father who sent away potential suitors claiming that none of them were good enough for his daughter. It can be argued that this overprotectiveness is what led her to her predicaments later on in life. Emily was very naïve about relationships; a reason why she jumped at the slightest sign of interest from a man after her father’s death. There were gaps in her upbringing and this is what may have led to her clinginess and even to murder. Correspondingly, Paul also grew up in a household where he was rarely understood. His father, who was the only living parent, did not care much for Paul’s restlessness. His sisters’ interest in what the middle-class lifestyle had to offer further made him alienated. No single individual bothered to get to the root of the problem and this may have led to his escape and subsequent suicide. One can see that in both stories, Emily and Paul were victims of circumstance. They were acting out against the stringent rules they grew up in.

These two stories also teach an important lesson – that an overly conservative society can be destructive. Emily lived in a white Southern society that placed stringent expectations upon women even when their experiences contravened those expectations (Cather, p. 15). Emily desperately wanted to be loved but society’s reverence for her could not permit her to access this love. Consequently, when she finally got a chance at love, she wanted to hold on to it eternally; a reason why she preferred ending Homer’s life over letting him go. The tragic end in this story illustrates that too much tradition causes individuals to look for extreme outlets. Likewise, Paul also came from a conservative society. He could not imagine going back to a mediocre existence after reading that his father had refunded the stolen money and was coming to New York to get him. Paul chose death as the only alternative to escaping his past life and the conservativeness that surrounded it.

Conclusion

Paul and Emily appear detached from reality. They both committed tragic acts i.e. murder and suicide respectively with the hope that they could somehow make their situations better. Emily wanted to make Homer her lover permanently and she thought that the only way to do so was by killing him. This was an unrealistic conception of love. Paul on the other hand believed that money was the solution to everything. His perception of what this could do for him was quite distorted and this is what led to his demise. (Faulkner, p. 23)

Works Cited

Cather, Willa. Paul’s Case. Mc Clure’s Magazine, 1906 Web.
Faulkner, William. A rose for Emily. Forum, 1930. Web.

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“A Rose for Emily” and “Paul’s Case”: Discontent With Life

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