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CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
1.1. Background of Study
The way Faulkner gives his works a soul, makes him becomes one of the greatest
American novelists. Although he dropped out of high school, the man who was born in
New Albany, Mississippi, September 25, 1897, finally could prove himself by earning
Pulitzer Prize and Nobel Prize after facing bitter fact that no publisher was interested in
his work ("Progressive Era", n.d.).
Being inspired by southern condition, especially in Mississippi, he wrote about
people and places he knew best. He uses the social condition where he lives as a base of
his literary works. He also names some of characters in his novels and short stories such
as aristocrats, merchants, poor whites, persecuted Afro-American and law officers based
on his ancestors' name ("BoekverslagWilliam Faulkner A Rose For Emily", n.d.).
Taking place in a fictitious Yoknapatawpha County, as a metaphorical setting, he
successfully portrayed the circumstance in the South in the postbellum period. His epic
portrayal, which is the central point of most of his works, and his expertise in writing
have become such an appealing factor for his readers.
One of those fascinating stories about the South's life is A Rose for Emily which
narrates about a pathetic life of a Southern noble lady, Emily Grierson. Her whole life is
certainly no bed of roses. Born as the upper-class, Emily feels hard to find a husband
since her father drives away every man trying to get closer to her. Nobody is good
enough for her. The way her father treats her has driven her to be a lonely spinster. After
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her father's death, she falls in love with a day laborer, Homer Barron. Soon, their
relationship faces many barriers from the society because of her social status as well as
Homer statement that he likes man. Facing this problem, she chooses to poison him with
arsenic and spend the rest of her life with his lover's corpse lying on her bed. However,
due to her strong position in the society, she can get away easily.
The unique thing about this story is its unpredictable ending as well as its deep
and rich meaning though it is wrapped in a form of short narration. Indeed, it is more
than a story about necrophilia, a person sleeping with a death body, who cannot accept
the reality. It reflects upon life in the South during the progressive era.
Ms. Emily's life shows an indication of the existence of a pseudo-aristocracy in
the society. Being born in the upper-class family automatically put her into the highest
social class as a ruling person. Her position makes her untouchable by law. Ms. Emily's
life is an example of the existence of a pseudo-aristocrat: a person who was
automatically born into high social status, wealth and authority, in a democratic country.
It is interesting to analyze to find out how an aristocracy can occur within a democracy.
1.2. Statement of Problem
This research will analyze the phenomenon of the occurrence of pseudoaristocracy in postbellum era around 1879-1924 in the southern America, especially in
Mississippi, as a democratic society.
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1.3. Scope and Limitation
This thesis revolves around a short story entitled A Rose For Emily by William
Faulkner. In particular, the analysis focuses on the life of Ms. Emily Grierson.
1.4.Goal and Function
The objective of this thesis is to learn about the phenomenon of the pseudoaristocracy in democratic society and the nature of southern America's condition
especially Mississippi, such as the characteristic of the society and the developments in
progressive era around 1879-1924 that strengthened the existence of the pseudoaristocracy. Further, the thesis attempts to widen readers'
comprehension about
America, especially for those who are learning about Southern America and those who
are interested in governmental issue.
l.S.Research Methodology
The writer used qualitative research in doing this study. She gathered
information from books, encyclopedia and also internet sites.
The first step taken in doing this thesis was choosing a work of art to be
analyzed. Next, the story was read comprehensively to get a complete understanding,
followed by selecting the issue to be discussed. Then, the writer searched the related
theories used as tools to analyze the problem. Derive from the theories used as the
means, the deep and thick analysis was done qualitatively. Having picture of the
analysis, the writer then wrote it out into a written report.