Abstract

The American writer William Faulkner enjoys a high reputation in the literature world and is especially renowned for his skillful application of symbolism in his works, among which the story A Rose for Emily is a typical one. In this study, efforts are made to discuss the application of symbolism in A Rose for Emily from a relatively new perspective-- Emily’s portrait depiction. Due to the unique character setting of the protagonist Emily, Faulkner uses a lot of words to describe the different portraits of Emily in various periods of her lifetime from the third person perspective, thus creating a gap between people’s perception--the “imaginary” Emily and the “real” Emily and leaving abundant room for readers to explore. Therefore, by studying the symbolic meanings behind those varied portrait depictions, we may get a little closer to the spiritual connotation of the novel. 

Keywords: symbolism; portrait depiction; the “imaginary Emily”; the “real Emily”

Contents

Abstract

摘  要

1. Introduction-2

2. Faulkner and Symbolism-3

  2.1 Symbolism in Faulkner's Works-4

  2.2 The Background of Faulkner's Using Symbolism in His Works-4

3. Portraits and Symbolic Meanings-5

  3.1 The Viewpoint--Third Person Perspective-6

      3.2 The Link between the Varied Portraits of Emily and the vaired Symbolic Meanings-10

4. The "Real Emily" and the Spiritual Connotation of the Story-11

      4.1 Revealing the "Real Emily"-12

      4.2 The Spiritual Connotation of A Rose for Emily-13

5. Conclusion-14

References-15