The short story “A Rose For Emily” was written by William Faulkner in 1930. Fifty-three years later, a movie adaptation was created based on Faulkner’s short story. The short story and the film both tell the story of Emily Grierson, but they are limited to what their mediums allow. This limitation inhibits the movie and the short story to be completely the same. The symbolism within “A Rose for Emily” and the plot remain alike; whereas, the chronological order and the mood are dissimilar between the two works. These varying elements give “A Rose For Emily” the ability to be distributed in two completely different mediums, while adhering to the same themes, values, and narrative.
“A Rose For Emily” was written with many Southern Gothic influences …show more content…
This could be because the movie utilizes music to its advantage. At times where there is an unearthly event going on in the film, such as when Emily’s father dies or when Homer’s body is revealed, the director overlays dark, uncanny music that sets the mood for the film. The director Lyndon Chubbuck most often did this with organ music, ultimately adding to the enjoyment of the film. William Faulkner did not have the benefit of using music in his short story, so the horror element falls a little flat compared to the movie. The written story has to rely solely on the author’s ability to create the mood with words, and it is just not as effective as other novels such as Misery by Stephen King. That does not suggest that William Faulkner does not create a scary aura within in the story. When the townspeople “saw a long strand of iron-gray hair,” the true extent of how crazy the situation is falls directly on the reader (Faulkner V). Not only do the film and short story differ in tone, they also differ in the order in which the story is told. William Faulkner is able to split up the plot into five different sections. Each subsection is not in chronological
“A Rose For Emily” was written with many Southern Gothic influences …show more content…
This could be because the movie utilizes music to its advantage. At times where there is an unearthly event going on in the film, such as when Emily’s father dies or when Homer’s body is revealed, the director overlays dark, uncanny music that sets the mood for the film. The director Lyndon Chubbuck most often did this with organ music, ultimately adding to the enjoyment of the film. William Faulkner did not have the benefit of using music in his short story, so the horror element falls a little flat compared to the movie. The written story has to rely solely on the author’s ability to create the mood with words, and it is just not as effective as other novels such as Misery by Stephen King. That does not suggest that William Faulkner does not create a scary aura within in the story. When the townspeople “saw a long strand of iron-gray hair,” the true extent of how crazy the situation is falls directly on the reader (Faulkner V). Not only do the film and short story differ in tone, they also differ in the order in which the story is told. William Faulkner is able to split up the plot into five different sections. Each subsection is not in chronological