The Unfortunate Downfalls of Emily Grierson and Paul Barron
1. Introduction
Thesis: Both Emily and Paul are discontent with their lives and eventually take desperate measures in an attempt to improve their situations – Emily kills her lover while Paul commits suicide.
Aristocrats in the late 1800s and early 1900s came from old money. They had a sense of entitlement and felt that they were better than everyone else. They lived in big cities like New York and Boston and led an aristocratic lifestyle. They were often involved in scandalous affairs and their relationships with their parents were often strained.
In this essay, I will be discussing the characters of Emily Grierson from “A Rose for Emily” and Paul Barron from “Paul’s Case”. I will be exploring how both characters are discontent with their lives and eventually take desperate measures in an attempt to improve their situations – Emily kills her lover while Paul commits suicide. I will also be looking at how both characters are detached from reality and how this contributes to their downfall.
2. Two Detached from Reality People
Emily Grierson from “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner and Paul Barron from “Paul’s Case” by Willa Cather are two characters who are both discontent with their lives. They eventually take desperate measures in an attempt to improve their situations – Emily kills her lover while Paul commits suicide. However, what ultimately leads to their downfall is that they are both detached from reality.
Emily is an aristocrat who is very disconnected from the world around her. She is content to live in her own little world and does not want anything to change. This is evident when she refuses to let the townspeople come into her house after her father’s death and when she refuses to pay her taxes. Emily is also very delusional and believes that she can keep her lover, Homer Barron, alive by poisoning him. This ultimately leads to his death and her own downfall.
Paul is also an aristocrat who is disconnected from the world around him. He is content to live in his own little world and does not want anything to change. This is evident when he refuses to go back to his job at the telegraph office after he runs away to New York City and when he tries to live the life of a wealthy man even though he does not have the money to do so. Paul is also very delusional and believes that he can have a successful relationship with a married woman even though he knows that it is wrong. This ultimately leads to his downfall as well.
3. Emily Grierson
Emily Grierson is a character from the short story “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner. She is an aristocrat who is very disconnected from the world around her. Emily is content to live in her own little world and does not want anything to change. This is evident when she refuses to let the townspeople come into her house after her father’s death and when she refuses to pay her taxes. Emily is also very delusional and believes that she can keep her lover, Homer Barron, alive by poisoning him. This ultimately leads to his death and her own downfall.
Emily’s father is a very controlling figure in her life and she is scared of him. This is evident when she refuses to let the townspeople come into her house after his death. She is also scared of change and this is evident when she refuses to pay her taxes. Emily is content to live in her own little world and does not want anything to change.
Emily is also very delusional and this leads to her downfall. She believes that she can keep Homer Barron alive by poisoning him. This ultimately leads to his death and her own downfall.
4. Paul Barron
Paul Barron is a character from the short story “Paul’s Case” by Willa Cather. He is an aristocrat who is disconnected from the world around him. Paul is content to live in his own little world and does not want anything to change. This is evident when he refuses to go back to his job at the telegraph office after he runs away to New York City and when he tries to live the life of a wealthy man even though he does not have the money to do so. Paul is also very delusional and believes that he can have a successful relationship with a married woman even though he knows that it is wrong. This ultimately leads to his downfall as well.
Paul’s father is a very controlling figure in his life and he is scared of him. This is evident when he runs away from home to New York City. Paul is also scared of change and this is evident when he tries to live the life of a wealthy man even though he does not have the money to do so. Paul is content to live in his own little world and does not want anything to change.
Paul is also very delusional and this leads to his downfall. He believes that he can have a successful relationship with a married woman even though he knows that it is wrong. This ultimately leads to his downfall as well.
5. Conclusion
Emily Grierson from “A Rose for Emily” and Paul Barron from “Paul’s Case” are two characters who are both discontent with their lives. They eventually take desperate measures in an attempt to improve their situations – Emily kills her lover while Paul commits suicide. However, what ultimately leads to their downfall is that they are both detached from reality.