Research Paper The short story “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner is about the life of Miss Emily Grierson. Emily is a mysterious character who evolves from a lively and optimistic young girl to an isolated and secretive old woman. Throughout the story, many other characters are introduced and contribute to the progression of the story and the conveyance of Miss Emily. Many who have read this tale have given many different opinions about Miss Emily. Many say she is a twisted, demented old woman and others consider her a true tragic heroine. Throughout the story, Faulkner uses characters such as Tobe, Mr. Grierson, Homer, the narrator, the townspeople, and even Miss Emily herself to create a truly haunting story. Tobe is the servant and caregiver. As the story begins with the feeling of power, it also ends with it. At the end, when the narrator talks about the iron gray hair on the pillow, even though it signified her necrophilia, he could also interpret that over the years of her aging, she has become hardened. Emily is a girl who has lost her way and who, having become a woman, has lost her grip on reality. “A Rose for Emily” is a very effective story not only because of its complex series of events but also because of the different use of narrator. Many critics mistakenly consider the narrator to be the spokesperson for the entire town, most likely a young man, but in reality the narrator is never identified as male or female. There is also speculation that the narrator is actually female. For example, as Burduck says: “The narrative voice, the town's spokesperson, seems very preoccupied with every detail of Emily's life. Faulkner provides us with an important clue regarding the gender of this narrator when he describes the townspeople's reaction to Emily's attachment to Homer Barron. Jefferson's male population seems apathetic about Emily's tryst; the men are not at all scandalized. The women of the town are so concerned by Emily's eccentricities that they force their men to act; one very interested woman in particular, the narrator, ensures that Emily's story is not forgotten” (209). The narrator is better at assessing the tone and throughout the story seems to have a change of opinion about Miss Emily. Overall, the narrator is compassionate towards Miss Emily because he never condemns her for her actions. The narrator still seems to respect her ability to use her aristocratic attitude to defeat members of the town and society as well as her aristocratic hostility. An example of this is when she associates