A Rose for Emily by William Faulker and A & P by John Updike analysed Essay

A Rose for Emily by William Faulker and A & P by John Updike analysed - Essay Example On a personal view, life is a process of making choices. Even the fact that an individual would put every life decision on fate is a choice in itself. For that matter, in the query regarding the human beings’ ability to make choices or to be controlled by fate, the main answer is that there is an interaction between making choices and having faith on fate. The two literary works analyzed depicted and captured how human beings live life. A Rose for Emily by William Faulker and A & P by John Updike are the main focus of the paper. These short stories exemplify the effects of the different events, cultural and social factors on the behavior, outlook, and the manner each of the characters lives life. A Rose for Emily In the short story by William Faulkner entitled A Rose for Emily, life was given a different light. The author focused on the dark elements that often occur in life thus the story leaned on the mysterious and macabre genre. Included in the elements of the plot are mul tiple deaths, tragedies of love, and strict family rules. Emily is the focus of the story. She is a character who is a member of a family with strict traditions and mysterious habits. These traditions and habits became the main reason why Emily and her family stood out of the community. They are very different, they attracted attention because they do not connect and mingle with other people, which is considered as a normal thing to do as a member of a community. For that matter, people around them either treat them with alienation or with antagonism. The main character Emily can be considered to have the fate of being born in a family of eccentric views and attitudes in terms of social interaction and relationships. As a person who only depends on whatever the fate brings, Emily can be presumed to just stay inside the house all her life, even after the death of her father. But as the story progressed, it is safe to say that this is not the case. When her father died she continued t o stay inside the house but this changed Homer Barron came into town. He is a charming guy involved in the construction and modernization of road in town. He represents a modern world where he came from. This can be concluded in the manner he carries himself. He is confident in interacting with the people in the community. Even Emily had not been safe from his charms. Her life and even her outlook in life changed when she met Homer. It had been fate that made Emily a part of an eccentric family. It was also fate who brought her Homer Barron. He changed her life to the point that she became a different person when he was around. She became more open and a part of the community. She was able to consciously change her ways when she was with Homer. Based on the said decision, Emily can be considered as a person who can make her own decisions. She is also a type of person who is not afraid to be criticized based on the decisions that she is making and the attitudes and behaviors that she is showing. Another action that affirmed Emily’s capability to make her own decisions was the fact that she wanted to keep her love with her forever, by keeping Homer’s body in the bedroom even after he died. Although this is weird and can even be considered as a twisted action, she had not been afraid to show expressions of her love for the man. People can judge such actions as insane but Emily stood by her own views. Regardless of the society’s negative reactions, she showed that she cannot be swayed. Until her last day, she lived with the choices and decisions she made. Based on the short story, different factors can affect the life of every person. Factors such as tradition, religion, genetic make-up and socioeconomic status can affect the manner by which person makes decisions