Where It All Goes Down
A creepy old house in Jefferson, Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, 1861-1933 (approximately)
Setting is usually pretty rich in Faulkner. SimCity-style, William Faulkner created his own Mississippi County, Yoknapatawpha, as the setting for much of his fiction. (For a map and a detailed description of Yoknapatawpha, click here.)
"A Rose for Emily" is set in the county seat of Yoknapatawpha, Jefferson and as you know, focuses on Emily Grierson, the last living Grierson.
But, though Jefferson and its inhabitants are unique, we can see their town as any southern town during that period. The situations that arise in the story develop in large part because many Southerners who lived during the antebellum era didn't know what to do when their whole way of life (you know: slave labor-based economy) ended.
Imagine if suddenly you are told and shown that your whole way of life is a sham, an atrocity, an evil. Then heap on a generous helping of Southern pride, and you have tragedies like this one. This story also explores how future generations deal with this legacy. To really feel the movement of history in the story, and to understand the movements of Emily's life, it important to pin down the chronology of events.
The dates we use, other than 1874, are just a little rough, but in the ballpark.
1861 – Miss Emily Grierson is born.
1870s – The Grierson house is built.
1893 – Miss Emily's father dies.
1893 – Miss Emily falls ill.
1893 – Miss Emily's taxes are remitted (in December).
1894 – Miss Emily meets Homer Barron (in the summer).
1895 – Homer is last seen entering Miss Emily's house (Emily is "over thirty; we use thirty-three for our calculations).
1895 – The townspeople become concerned about the smell of the Grierson house and sprinkle lime around Emily's place.
1895 – Miss Emily stays in for six months.
1895-1898 – Miss Emily emerges and her hair gradually turns gray.
1899 – Miss Emily stops opening her door, and doesn't leave the house for about five years.
1904 – Miss Emily emerges to give china-painting lessons for about seven years.
1911 – Miss Emily stops giving painting lessons. Over ten years pass before she has any contact with the town.
1925 – They "newer generation" comes to ask about the taxes. This is thirty years after the business with the lime. This is the last contact she has with the town before her death.
1935 – Miss Emily dies at seventy-four years old. Tobe leaves the house. Two days later the funeral is held at the Grierson house. At the funeral, the townspeople break down the door to the bridal chamber/crypt, which no one has seen in forty years.
This doesn't answer all the questions by any means. Since nobody in the town ever knew what was really going on in Emily's house, there are numerous holes and gaps in this history. Still, you can use this as a guide to help make sense of some of the confusing moments.