"A Rose for Emily"

This story by William Faulkner, is told in an interesting way with a twist on the end. A few of the questions at the end of the story ask what is contributed by the use of first-person plural point of view and what is the point of the non-chronological order of the story. The narrator(s) of this story is the towns people. They discuss what they know of Emily, who has passed away, and the way they have judged her through out her life. Because the towns people are telling the story the reader can only know what they have assumed about her and what they have seen her do. The towns people believe that she is snobby and avoids people for that purpose."she carried her head high" (page 286) The towns people also know of her family history; "People in our town, remembering how old lady Wyatt, her great-aunt, had gone completely crazy at last, believed that the Griersons held themselves a little too high for what they really were." (page 284)However, since the reader only knows what the towns people know, the reader doesn't know of Emily's true insanity until the very end of the story. This is why the fist-person plural is an effective narrative. This narration also creates a non-chronological way of telling of Emily's life. It is as if the towns people are reminiscing sporadically and not in a distinct order. This gives the story a sense of realism like what towns people may truly remember and report about a person. These techniques greatly contribute to the story as a whole.