Emily Grierson: To Be or Not To Be a Lady
...r to their level. Even still, they regard her as an obligation to the town because of her lady-like customs. The town believes she is unable to fend for herself. At recognition of Emily no longer having the wealth she previously had, the townspeople still envision her as a mysterious lady through which they all follow her every movement. When Emily was reluctant to admit her father’s demise, the people of the town, out respect, would not admit their belief in her insanity. The town believes they are not of high enough prestige to confront Emily about her “condition.” Typically, a “lady” of the time is expected to court a man of high honor or prestige, not a laborer. When Emily is seen with Homer Barron, a laboring Yankee, she defies all social customs implied at the time. Homer, a cursing and beer-drinking man, is far from the specific type of man a lady is to court. The townspeople state, “even grief could not cause a real lady to forget noblesse oblige...” (33; ch. 3) Emily does forget noblesse oblige, and she does not behave with honor or dignity because she is not a real lady. A real lady accepts the traditions, beliefs, and other social customs of the time without argument, and Emily is defiant in all her actions when courting Homer Barron. The real ladies of the town “began to say that it was a disgrace to the town and a bad example to the young people.” (34; ch. 4) Even still, the men, nor the women, confront Emily on her improper behavior. It is later debatably revealed Homer Barron is homosexual or more apt to going out with his friends to the bars. Emily’s reaction to this discovery is far from lady-like. She is outraged a “day laborer” would betray her in her current Martin 3 social position. Emily feels as if no one is capable of taking advantage of her high-standing position. This incident further contradicts with Emily and the definition of a lady being “a woman to whom a man is romantically attached.” (Dictionary.com) Homer is far from any attachment with Emily. His commitment is to his free lifestyle with no obligations and this outrages Emily. He tries to distance himself from Emily to the best degree possible. Why would a “Yankee” not want to marry a “lady?” Emily can not piece together the answer to this question, and this leads to her horrendous action defying the behavior of a lady. Emily proceeds to a drug store to buy poison. Because of her position of being perceived as a “lady,” she feels no obligation to answer the druggist’s question on her intended purpose for the poison. Law, at the current time, requires an intended use to be stated, and Emily forgoes her obligations to the state because of her implications of showing herself as a lady. She has once more escaped what has been expected of her. The imagery Faulker employs throughout the story about Emily contradicts all images modern people have of lady-like figures. Faulkner describes Emily in the beginning as being “a small, fat woman in black, with a thin gold chain descending to her waist and vanishing into her belt, leaning on an ebony cane with a tarnished gold head....Her eyes, lost in the fatty ridges of her face, looked like two small pieces of coal pressed into a lump of dough...” (30; ch. 1) This description is dark and clashes with the flowered-dress, sun bonnets, and long flowing, radiant hair many readers envision when reading the term, “lady.” Faulkner describes her voice as “dry and cold,” (30; ch. 1) conflicting with the sweet sounding voice of a “lady.” At the time of Emily’s death, she “fell ill in the house filled with dust and shadows, with only a doddering Negro man to wait on her.” (35; ch. 4) This description is far from what is Martin 4 envisioned of a “lady’s death.” At the death of a lady, one would expect the upset of many people, and more than a servant there by her side. Faulkner portrays Emily lying on an old, aged pillow. This pillow is similar to those of our common elders and finally presents the last detail to Emily’s normality. It is ironic that a lady would live alone in a dusty house and sleep on moldy, yellowed pillows. The townspeople explore the rest of the house, and in the upstairs room, they find the tarnished toiletries Emily bought for Homer Barron. This tarnishing represents the stain and disgrace now brought upon the townspeople’s view of Emily once they have realized she has not been a real lady. They have discovered the corpse of Homer Barron in the bedroom, and are now aware of the horrendo...