Analysis of Southern Gothic Literature Essay

gray medieval literary productions, which is a sub-genre of the black letter makeup style, is unique to the American S knocked knocked out(p)(p)h. southboundern Gothic litebetrayerure has some(prenominal) a(prenominal) of the same aspects as Gothic literature it focuses on topics such as expiry, madness, and the A- superstar natural as well has having legion(predi trampe) mystical, bizarre, violent, and grotesque aspects. These tools be used to elatek social issues and reveal the cultural caliber of the American South (Wikipedia). The antecedents of Confederate Gothic writing use damaged characters to raise their stories, and to show deeper highlights of unpleasant southern characteristics.These characters argon usu e real last(predicate)y set apart from their societies due(p) to their custodytal, physical, and or social disabilities. However non all the aspects of the characters are bad it is more(prenominal) often the case that a compartwork forcetalisation of trusty and bad is constitute in most of the characters (McFLY) The authors of these stories do make it the principal(prenominal) character some effectual qualities this is so the reader will fill hu art objectity and infrastanding for the character. Two authors who exhibit the southern Gothic writing style are William Faulkner, who wrote A Rose for Emily, and Flannery OConner, the author of computable verdant wad and A Good Man is Hard to arrive.William Faulkners A Rose for Emily is an showcase of southerly Gothic literature. It contains many aspects of Southern Gothic writing, such as an middle-aged dark mansion, death, mystery, bizarre withalts, and the crazy Miss. Emily. The legend takes protrude in a littler townshipspeopleshipspeople in Jeffer give-and-take Mississippi. The narrator disunites us the drool of Miss. Emily Grierson, from the towns loony toons of view. ? A Rose for Emily is the remarkable story of Emily Grierson, an aging spinster in Jeff erson, whose death and funeral drew the attention of the entire town (Faulkner n. p. ). The first signalise that this story is going away to be Southern Gothic is when Faulkner describes her funeral. harmonize to the narrator, when Miss. Emily died, every matchless attended her funeral the men through a sort of respectful affection for a fallen monument, the women mostly out of remnant to see the inside of her sept (Perrines 281). The narrator then goes on to tell the story of Miss. Emily. Miss. Emily lived in a at one measure comely, white, seventies style home, save as the years went by her home became an eyesore among eyesores (Perrines 281).This may be a manifestation of how the town saw Miss. Emily herself, erstwhile beautiful and now an eyesore to the entire community. aft(prenominal) Miss. Emilys render had died, Colonel Sartoris t venerable her that she would not cod to repair taxes on her base, due to the fact that her father had loaned money to the town, whi ch the town, . . . , preferred this way of repaying (Perrines 282). So for many years, Miss. Emily went on with out paying taxes. When the future(a) generation came into office, a tax notification was displace to Miss. Emily, who move it back end to them with no prepareer(a) comments.The bill of Aldermen was sent to her brook they knocked at the gate through which no visitor had passed (Perrines 282) through for eight to ten years. When they were let in, by the honest-to-goodness black, they can olfactioned of dust and disuse (Perrines 282). When Miss. Emily entered the murkily light living path she looked bloated, kindred a body massive submersed in motionless water (Perrines 282-283). The spokesman asked why Miss. Emily had not paid her taxes, to which she replied I have no taxes in Jefferson. ? run into Colonel Sartoris (Perrines 283). What Miss.Emily did not know was that Colonel Sartoris had been departed for almost ten years now. On one occasion, a neig hborhood woman went to the mayor to complain of a smell coming from Miss. Emilys folk. The mayor image postcode of it until two more complaints were certain the succeeding(prenominal) day. in conclusion the Board of Aldermen sent four men out to her house the next night, aft(prenominal)wards midnight, and sprinkled lime all around Miss. Emilys house and outbuildings by and by a week or two the smell went away (Perrines 284). later that incident, the people began to feel sorry for her.They believed that the Griersons held themselves a little too high for what they actually were (Perrines 284). No man was good sufficient for her by her father and by the time she was thirty she was still unwed. after her father died, the people finally had a reason to fell bad for her. She was completely in the manhood with only her house left this left her humanized. The day after her fathers death, the women of the town went to give their condolences to Miss. Emily. To their surpris e, Miss. Emily was dressed as usual and had no trace of grief on her submit (Perrines 285). Emily told the women that her father was not dead. ultimately after three days of laborious to hold on to her father, she broke tidy sum, and they bury her father quickly (Perrines 285). The towns people tired to relinquish Miss. Emilys actions, by verifying that she had nothing left, and was clinging to the one thing that had robbed her for so presbyopic they exchanged themselves that she was not crazy. The summer after her father died, the town hired contractors to pave the sidewalks. The foreman, mark Barron, and Miss. Emily became quite companionable of one another.On Sunday afternoons they could bee seen ride in his buggy together. Soon the people began to gurgle well-nigh Emily and Homer. Emily held her head high she would not be seen as anything other than respectful. The towns people believed that Miss. Emily should have home come to stay with her for a while. opus Em ilys two cousins were visiting her, she went and bought rat poison. When she got to the drug store, she would not tell the pill pusher why she cherished arsenic, but when she got home, under the skull and bones on the box the pill pusher had written For rats. Everyone believed that she was going to kill herself. only when then, Miss. Emily was seen in buying a flatware toilet set for men, with H. B. on all(prenominal) piece, and then she bought a complete mens outfit. Everyone state They are married, referring to Miss. Emily and Homer Barron. When the streets were done, Homer left. Three days after Emilys cousins had left, Homer was back in town he was seen going in to Miss. Emilys house through the Kitchen gateway at dusk. No one prescribe Homer or Emily for some time. When she was next seen, she had grown fat, and her hair was turning gray. social class after year, the people watched as the Negro man grew older and older. The only sign of Miss Emily was when she was seen through one of her down the stairs windows. Then one day Miss. Emily died. The women and men came to pay respects, and to see what Miss. Emily had kept clandestine for so many years. After she was buried, the towns people went back to Emilys house to look at the room which had not been used in everywhere forty years. What they raise would explain many things that had happened over the years. After the door was forced open, and the dust settled, they looked active the room.On the chest of drawers an outfit and tie were laid out, along with a pair of shoes. In the bed, they found Mr. Homer Barron. last, someone noticed that on the pillow next to Mr. Barrons, someone had been sleeping on it. A head indention was in the pillow, along with a single mountain range of Miss. Emilys gray hair. Miss. Emily killed Homer by and large to placate society, although that, in her deranged mind, also secured him as her lover forever (Dilworth n. p. ). Flannery OConner is another author who writes in the Southern Gothic style. His story Good Coun yield People takes place in south.He uses attributes such as lies, faithless ness, and feigning to make his story Southern Gothic. The main character, Hulga, finds many things to be vituperate with the world she lives in she also finds many things wrong with fret. Hulga is a large girl with a crippled leg. She does not believe in God, and she uses her studies as an excuse to escape the world. Mrs. Hopewell tries to convince herself that Joy, who changed her pattern to Hulga, is still a child, even thought Hulga is thirty- two years old. secret code is perfect and that is life where two of Mrs.Hopewells favorite sayings (Good Country People n. p. ). Mrs. Hopewell and Mrs. Freeman, the landlord, talked about many things together. One thing that they twain agreed on was at that place arent enough good county people (OConnor n. p. ). man Mrs. Hopewell was making dinner one night, a young man, by the name of cursor, came to the Hopewells house to sell bibles. Hulga, who was atheist, was not to fond of the young man, but once Mrs. Hopewell found out that he was from good farming people she couldnt get enough of him. She even invited him in for dinner.During dinner pointer talked to Hulga about his family and where he was from and why he sold Bibles. After dinner, Hulga walked the young man out. The next day, Mrs. Freeman and Mrs. Hopewell were talk about the Bible salesman. Mrs. Freeman said she had seen Hulga talking to him at the fence, and wandered what she had said to the boy. Hulga over perceive all this, and tried to make a scene by getting up and stumping with about twice the interference that was necessary, into her room (OConnor n. p. ). When Hulga got to her room, she went over the conversation that she had with arrow the day before.Hulga and pointer had made plans to go on a picnic the next day. Hulga tried to act as if she did not really want to go, but she had other plans o f her own. While she was in bed that night, she went over all the different ways that she could pretend Pointer. Hulga imagined that the two of them walked ? until they came to the storage barn ? and that she very easily seduced him (OConnor n. p. ). When she got up the next aurora to met Pointer at the gate, he wasnt there, she thought she had been stood up, and then she saw him he had been behind a bush.He was there in the same dirty old clothes as yesterday, only this time he had on a hat. Hulga asked, why did you bring your Bibles? They ripe keep on walking though, until they got to the barn. Once inside the barn, they climbed up into the hay loft. Once they were both in the loft, Pointer started kissing Hulga When here render got in the way, he took them off of her and slipped them into his chemise (OConnor n. p. ). Once Hulga returned his kisses he told her that he love her, to this Hulga had no reply for many minutes.After she said she did love him, he wanted her t o prove it, he told Hulga to show me where your wooden leg joins in (OConnor n. p. ). Hulga couldnt do this, not at first anyways. Finally after she had taken off her wooden leg, but when she wanted it back on, Pointer refused to give it back, instead he put it in his Bible suitcase. Hulga cried and pleaded for her leg to be returned, but all Pointer could say was you neednt to think youll image me because Pointer aint really my name (OConnor n. p. ) Flannery OConnor also wrote A Good Man is Hard to produce. The story takes place in Georgia. In this story a gran and her family were deciding on where to go for the family vacation. The grandmother did not want to go to Florida, which is where the rest of the family wanted to go, she wanted to go to Tennessee. To try to convince the family not to go to Florida, she told them that she told them that she had practiced read on phrase about a prisoner, The Misfit, who had escaped form the Federal Penitentiary. She also tries to conv ince the family to go to Tennessee by saying that the children never have been to east Tennessee (OConnor 495). The family would not listen to her, and distinct to go to Florida anyways. On the way down to Florida, the family stopped at a little diner to get lunch. While they were there the owner and his wife were talking about the Misfit as well. After leaving the dinner the grandmother remembered a house that she had once been to it was an old Southern Plantation. She nags and nags her son to just stop in and see the house she even implies that it would be good for the children by saying that it would be very educational for them. Finally after her grandchildren pleaded their father to stop, her son finally decided to take a short drive down the passage of the house. Once they had turned down the long dirt road, which went to the plantation, the grandmother suddenly remembered that the house she had been thinking of was not even in Georgia, but in Tennessee. Rather than telling her son that she had made a mistake, she just sat back and keeps it to herself. As they were driving down the driveway, the grandmothers cat sprang form its resting spot and landed on her sons shoulder.The car went out of control, the children where thrown to the floor and their mother ? was thrown out of the car the old madam was thrown into the front seat (OConnor 502). The children were rapt about being in a wreck. While the parents and grandmother while arduous to recuperate form what had just happened, a truck pulled up. The grandmother had a popular opinion that she knew the man who stepped out of the truck. The man said he had seen the accident happen, and told one of the boys in the truck with him to go check and see if the car would still run.Thatswhen the grandmother knew who the man was it was The Misfit. Youre the Misfit exclaimed the grandmother. Yesm ? but it it would have been better for all of you, lady, if you hadnt of reckernized me (OConnor 503). The Mi sfit had no other choose, he told Bobby downwind to take the father and the boy and go back into the woods. The whole time, the grandmother was trying to talk The Misfit out of hurting her. She told the Misfit, I just know youre a good man (505). To this he replies, Nome, I aint a good man (505). Then the sound of gunfire was comprehend coming form where Bobby lee side had taken her son and grandchild.Next the Misfit had the mother and the other two children taken back into the woods. The grandmother still tried to talk her way out of being hurt, but failed to ask that her family be saved as well. Three more rounds of shots could be heard from the woods, the grandmother only talked faster to try to save her own life. She told him that Jesus would clear him of his sins if only he would ask for it. Finally when the grandmother looked at The Misfit she said wherefore youre one of my babies. Youre one of my own children to this The Misfit sprang back and shot the old land three times in the chest.All of the stories that are discussed in this write up have many signs of being Southern Gothic literature. They show sings of characters that are extremely flawed, stingy, and uncaring. The stories are mysterious, bizarre, and ironic in the end. Southern Gothic authors use these types of traits in their stories to catch the readers attention, and to show aspects of the south that are not perfect. Southern Gothic literature is suspenseful and awkward, but is a very well known writing style. Works Cited Definition of southern medieval as provided by Wikipedia .Dilworth, Thomas A Romance to Kill For Homicidal Complicity in Faulkners A Rose for Emily Studies in Short Fiction (363) 1999 251-62 OConnor, Flannery. A Good Man Is Hard to Find Perrines Literature Structure, Sound, and Sense. 8th ed. Boston, MA Heinle & Heinle, 2001. 495- 509. OConnor, Flannery. Good Country People. n. p. 31 Jan. 2006. . Faulkner, William. A Rose for Emily 2002 Perrines Literature Struc ture, Sound, and Sense. 8th ed. Boston, MA Heinle & Heinle, 2001. 281- 289. Faulkner, William William Faulkner on the web . Southern Gothic. McFLY. n. d. 5 Feb. 2006 .