Miss Emily purchases the arsenic
to kill Homer Barron, a Yankee working man who has come to town to work on the paving of sidewalks in the town
. The people of the town think that she will be able to persuade him, although he is said not to be a marrying kind of man.
What was the poison in A Rose for Emily?
As the affair continues and Emily’s reputation is further compromised, she goes to the drug store to purchase
arsenic
, a powerful poison. She is required by law to reveal how she will use the arsenic.
What does Miss Emily tell the druggist the poison is to be used for?
Miss Emily never told the druggist what the poison was to be used for, just for him to give it to her. What does Miss Emily tell the druggist the poison is to be used for?
The women pestered him to convince Emily to not marry Homer Barron.
What did Emily do with the poison?
Her struggle with loss and attachment is the impetus for the plot, driving her to
kill Homer Barron
, the man that is assumed to have married her. Emily presumably poisons and kills Homer, as she sees murder as the only way to keep Homer with her permanently.
Why does Miss Emily refuse a mailbox?
So, as was her standard practice for change in Jefferson, When the town got free postal delivery,
Miss Emily alone refused to let them fasten the metal numbers above her door and attach a mailbox
to it. She would not listen to them.
Why does Miss Emily get rid of her cousins?
Miss Emily didn’t want her relatives there to “keep an eye on her” in regards to her relationship with Homer, so now that they appear to be acting responsibly and getting married, everyone — the townspeople and Miss Emily — will be happily rid of the cousins who will no longer have
a purpose
to be in town.
Why did Emily want poison in A Rose for Emily?
Why did Emily poison Homer? She
wanted to exercise power
, she couldn’t accept that Homer was a homosexual, and she didn’t want another man to be taken away from her. Emily’s father controlled her life up until his death.
Why did Emily never marry?
She purchased the items before Homer made it clear that they would not be married and then bought the rat poison. Emily’s main reasons for killing him were because she was angry that he had turned her down, and that she knew that this was her last, best chance at matrimony.
What does arsenic symbolize in A Rose for Emily?
Lime and arsenic are some of the story’s creepiest symbols. … It’s also a symbol of the way the town, in that generation, did things. We lump it together with arsenic because they are both symbols of
getting rid of something that smells
, and in the case of “A Rose for Emily,” it happens to be the very same thing.
Why did Emily become obsessed with Baron Homer?
Women of Emily’s social standing were expected to marry a prestigious man and have a family. Miss Emily had mental issues from being single well into her thirties; an inherited insanity and from the way her father treated her. Miss Emily became obsessed with Homer Barron
because of her mental state of mind
.
Why did Emily sleep with Homer?
Adopting the aforementioned adage that, “if I can’t have him, nobody can,” Emily has ensured that she, and she alone, will possess Homer. She lies with
his corpse because it represents the husband or lover she never had but always craved
.
Why did Emily keep her father’s body?
She sought
to find a replacement for her father
and was attracted to the authoritarian character in the men that she loved and this may have been the reason why she kept their bodies around after their deaths to maintain the same environment to which she had been accustomed and to alleviate the feeling of loneliness.
Why would Emily deny her father was dead What does the story say he was like with her?
They didn’t pay the bills or worry their little heads about issues of government, laws, taxes, and the like. This is why Miss Emily continues to deny the men who
come to collect the taxes from her
, turning them away from the door without any satisfaction. Her entire life changed with her father’s death.
How does Emily Grierson’s personality change?
Emily Grierson
The object of fascination in the story. A eccentric recluse, Emily is a mysterious figure who changes from
a vibrant and hopeful young girl to a cloistered and secretive old woman
. Devastated and alone after her father’s death, she is an object of pity for the townspeople.
Do the townspeople in A Rose for Emily View Emily Grierson as a victim or a villain?
More important than that however, is the town’s allegiance to Miss Emily. … Do the townspeople in “A Rose for Emily” view Emily Grierson as a victim or a villain?
The citizens of Jefferson view Miss Emily as a victim of her circumstances
, particularly those related to her father’s stifling influence.
How were the two female cousins more Grierson than Miss Emily has ever been?
The town thinks Miss Emily’s “two female cousins are even more Grierson than Miss Emily had ever been” (4.4). And that is definitely not a compliment. These cousins from Alabama are
relatives of
old lady Wyatt and had been estranged from Emily’s father since the time of old lady Wyatt’s death.
