Comparison of Three Stories: Everyday Use,Rose for Emily, Dead Mans Path - Essay Example

The Idea of Progression There are several similarities and differences that can be drawn from “Everyday Use” and “A Rose for Emily.” Progression as a strong theme in both short stories can best be discussed by exploring the importance of the Grierson house and Maggie’s quilt as symbolisms of the passing of time. On the other hand, juxtaposing the narrators of both stories would also provide us rich insight as to how, over time, we are taken through different phases through differing lenses. The first part of this paper will therefore talk about the similarity between the two stories, and the other part will discuss how they differ from each other. In “A Rose for Emily”, the Grierson house stands as a testament to a different era that has withstood the test of time. First, it stood as a monument, a breathing, living symbol of the Griersons’ wealth and power in their town. The looming structure sheltered Emily’s ancestors, her father and aunt, and lastly, herself. After her father’s death, it became a shield with which she drove away others from her, and she hid behind her shield so well that nobody had access to what was going on inside the house. And yet, as time passed, the house also became her prison. She was chained to the comfort and protection that her family’s house provided. Her faithful manservant became her only contact to the outside world, and even he was not fully aware of the developments in the town. Emily did not even know that the mayor who spared her family from taxes has been gone for a decade. It is this kind of sameness within her cocoon that made her retreat from the world so effective. The house also contained her secrets, and hid them well. Nobody has ever set foot inside the house for so long, and this has added to that air of mystery that it embodied. Even when Emily opened her house to children who came to learn china painting, she did not reveal to them all of the hidden nooks and crannies of her abode. The house remained formidable, a stalwart witness to the passing of time. In the end, however, time was the only thing that remained, and upon Emily Grierson’s death, the house had to be opened up to enquiring neighbors. It was then that they finally discovered the secrets that the house harbored for a long time, and in a way, this became Emily’s posthumous salvation, for in the very end, they understood that she too experienced love for a man, and that she too, whom they previously thought was above them, was very human and was not after all alien to the willful demands of passionate love. The house then became a symbol of Emily’s emancipation and liberation, and of how, when it finally opened up to the outside world, it had withstood the progression of time. A similar symbol of liberation can be found in “Everyday Use.” The quilt, which was handed down from generation to generation, represented Maggie and Dee’s family heritage and identity, and the richness of their family’s history. The significance of the title lies in the way that the quilt brought out the fundamental differences between Maggie and Dee. Each saw the quilt quite differently: Dee thought that the quilt was good to hang in the wall and to be preserved, given that she has learned, through her progression to being cultured and educated, that the quilt must be handled with care. Maggie – and her mother – on the other hand saw the quilt as a source of comfort and connection to their older generations, and as such, must be kept closer to heart and be used daily for the very purpose that it was intended. The way they viewed the quilt represented the fundamental difference between their characters. The conversation revolving around Dee’s name change also revealed the kind of relationship that Dee had with her family. It can be inferred that Dee was not aware that she was not named after white people, but rather, that her name was a derivative from their ancestors. It was this kind of not-knowing, of ignorance of their family history, coupled with her distorted view of their family quilt, that gave readers the impression that Dee was not quite better off than her poor family. It was also noteworthy to point out that because of Dee’s insistence on being called by the name she chose for herself despite her mother having explained to her her name origin, her mother chose to honor her wish and call her by her that name. At this point, it is not clear whether her mother was being facetious by being so obliging, or merely being a loving mother who wishes to see her daughter happy with what she chooses. In the end, the quilt became the reason for Maggie’s emancipation and liberation from her perceived disabilities when her mother insisted that Dee should not take away the quilt but instead choose from the other heirlooms. Keeping the quilt became a symbol of triumph for her over her overpowering sister. The quilt also became a symbol of Maggie’s right to preserve her way of life, and to stand up to Dee and her modern ways. A fundamental difference between the two short stories is the point of view of the narrators. In “A Rose for Emily”, the narrator is an outsider who apparently had access to an insider’s recollection of the town’s history, particularly that of the Grierson family. The narrator must have been a contemporary of Emily’s who took the reader back to the past by recounting the events during her father’s death, and what happened shortly afterwards. The story was told vividly by describing the highlights of their unfortunate history. Through the narrator’s lens, we saw how the town saw the Griersons – a contrasting mix of reverence, pity, awe, hate, and compassion; these – but never indifference. There was nobody in town who was not involved in their telltale history; in fact, the narrator made the impression that the family is probably fodder for gossip in their small, close-knit town. We felt, through the description of the narrator, that in the end, the town was ready to forgive Emily now that she was able to accept their pity. The narrator took us through a range of emotions while keeping all the events as close to the truth as possible. One can say that the narrator is not a disinterested party at all, not an omniscient teller of tale who knew all sides of the story, although in the end, the narrator was also able to fully supply the closure to the sad history of the Grierson family through sympathetic eyes, and left us to draw the conclusion ourselves as to what happened to Emily inside the Grierson house. The narrator in “Everyday Use” is the mother of Maggie and Dee. It was quite curious to note how she went to great lengths to describe herself, vis-a-vis her sophisticated daughter Dee. The readiness by which she admitted her weaknesses and strengths revealed that she was comfortable with her identity – and who her family is. This leaves the reader wondering whether having Dee for a daughter made her feel intimidated and cowed. She certainly seemed in awe of her daughter. The reader can also surmise that she has a better relationship with her other daughter Maggie. One can conclude that this is because the mother identified with her other daughter, and that she felt protective of her. This was certainly demonstrated in the end, when she insisted upon the quilt remaining with Maggie as one of her wedding mementos rather than being taken by Dee. It is also curious to note that the narrator spoke of Dee as if she were another person and not her daughter. Having come from a hardy family, and not at all sophisticated nor feminine, born to cattle and farmland and sweating it out everyday, the narrator felt that her daughter is different from her. This was revealed early on when she mentioned how Dee had hated the house that burned down. The narrator felt more sympathy towards the other daughter since she was also the victim of the fire that took their home. With her burns and deformity, Maggie seemed to be more deserving of her affection and time rather than Dee who had more confidence and sense of self-preservation to take care of herself first. Lastly, the narrator leaves us with the feeling that, even though her two daughters are very much different, she has accepted that they will have different paths and views in life. She described dispassionately how Maggie has a “dopey, hangdog look” that made her look ever more pitiful. Even if she gave the impression that she was in awe of her sophisticated daughter, in the end, she reclaimed her authority as their mother who, despite being uneducated and unsophisticated, still had the last say as to whether the family quilt can be taken or not. It is this kind of involved narration that takes us to a particular point of view which, while not all-encompassing or omniscient, deepens our understanding of the dynamics of the characters in the story. Works Cited Faulkner, William, and Noel Polk et al. A Rose for Emily. Harcourt College Publishers, 2000. Print. Volpe, Edmond Loris. A Reader's Guide to William Faulkner: The Short Stories. Syracuse University Press, 2004. Print. Kirszner, Laurie G. and Stephen R. Mandell. Fiction: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Paulinas, 1994. Print. Walker, Alice and Barbara Christian. Everyday Use. Rutgers University Press, 1994. Print. Read More