FREE ESSAY ON COMPARATIVE ESSAY: DRY SEPTEMBER & A ROSE FOR EMILY

COMPARATIVE ESSAY: DRY SEPTEMBER & A ROSE FOR EMILY

Dry September and A Rose for Emily are two stories that explores life of two small towns,
each having similarities as well as differences in the way it was written. In analyzing
the two stories, we will reveal the emotions of the characters, the tone of the story,
and how the setting is used to show the feeling of the story. in doing so, we will
discover the style Faulkner uses to employ his tone on the story and to get a better
understanding of the two stories.
McLendon, one of the characters of Dry September is a racist, ignorant, suprimist
dictator. We discover this by McLendons actions throughout the story. In one situation,
McLendon rally's up a group of white men to commit a crime against an African American
accused of attacking a white women. He doesn't use reason and the only thing in his mind
is to get this person and lynch him. He is dictatorial and is found saying, Happen? What
the hell difference does it make? Are you going to let the Black sons get away with it
until one really does it...no talking necessary at all. I've done my talking. Who's with
me? This reveals the power he has over people, making them choose to either be
compassionate to an African American in the South during the mid 1900s or to a white
southern women during an era where racial discrimination was considered acceptable in
America. 
Another character of Dry September is the barber, who seems to be the opposite of
McLendon. The barber is compassionate, reasonable, and weak. In the beginning of the
story, the barber seems to be the only person in the barber shop who reasons with
McLendon, commenting that Will Mayes never done it. I know. That reveals the barbers
relation to Will Mayes, that he cares about him and that he is willing to hold is
emotions till the truth is revealed. But ultimately the barber turns coward, unable to
convince the men that what they're doing is wrong. That's revealed when Will Mayes turns
to him and begs him to save him. Unable to stand up for him, the barber stays silent, and
in doing so, signs Will Mayes death sentence.
The setting of Dry September is set so that the characters are believable and that the
situation is clear and defined. Phrases like 'bloody September twilight and day had died
in a pall of dust reveals a tense situation which perfectly fits the subject. Other
phrases like 62 rainless days and fire in dry grass reveal the tension and uneasiness of
the town.
In A Rose for Emily, Faulkner makes us feel pity and sympathy for Emily. Throughout most
of her younger years, Emily was intensely protected by her father. That shows her
dependence for a powerful figure in her life. When her father died, Emily was unable to
accept that he had died. She broke down when the townspeople finally did take the body
away, probably knowing that she no longer has anyone to look out for her. This makes her
look pathetic as she is unable to be independent
Another reason why we feel pity for Emily is that she can't seem to feel any form of
happiness and security in her life. One example is with her lover. She only finds
security and happiness after she poisons her boyfriend in an effort to keep him from
leaving her, like how her father left her. Knowing that he will be with her forever,
Emily hides that her boyfriend had died and locks him up in one of her rooms. This would
lead us to believe that Emily is a sick and demented women, if for the fact that she had
slept by his side for forty or so years. This shows her love for him, and how devoted she
was to him. It makes her look pathetic and we feel sorry for her instead of the initial
reaction of a crazed woman.
The setting in A Rose for Emily helps set the readers thoughts of a pathetic and helpless
woman. Emily lives in a run-down southern plantation mansion, worn down due to time. Dust
fills the surroundings and weeds are rampant. The description of her house parallels her
image. Like the house, she is worn down due to age. Her house is neglected, no one except
for a single black servant there. We imagine the house to be as pathetic as her.
The townspeople in A Rose for Emily also reinforce her image of a sad creature. When the
townspeople discover her dead, all they can do is gossip and bring her image down. During
her younger years, the town was extremely nosy. Everything that happened to her, every
event that involved her, the town was right there to know. It's as if Emily was an
attraction from a circus. Because of this, we again are forced to feel sympathetic for
Emily, as she is judged and ridiculed by the townspeople.
At the end, we are both left pity for both Emily and McLendon and the barber. The main
difference is that for Emily, we feel sympathetic of her life and how she couldn't move
away from a dependent existence, we wanted her to move on. While for McLendon we feel
pity in the fact that he is ignorant and is a person who can't do something without a mob
to follow him. For the barber, we feel pity in the fact that he couldn't stand up, and do
something courageous and noble.