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The short story A Rose for Emily by William Faulkner described the story of Emily who was regarded as a symbol of the tradition by people.In the novel，there are a lot of things contradictory to each other.
Emily was born in a traditional family and had received good education since she could give lessons in China-painting.However，regarded as a symbol of tradition，there was also something of untraditional or something of resisting the tradition in her.
First，we must admit that she was much more traditional and to some degree stubborn than the people around her.Her house is one of the proofs.“It was a big，squarish frame house that had once been white，decorated with cupolas and spires and scrolled balconies in the heavily lightsome of the seventies，set on what had been our most selected street.But garages and cotton gins had encroached and obliterated even the august name of the neighborhood； only Miss Emily’s house was left，lifting its stubborn and coquettish decay above the cotton wagons and the gasoline pumps--an eyesore among eyesores.”From this we can know that the people around her were trying to keeping to the times and the development while she refused them and insist on the ’tradition’.
Traditional as she was，there was also something untraditional in her nature.After her father’s death，she was sick for some time，but when people saw her again，“her hair was cut，making her look like a girl”.The appearance change of her just indicates that she also had the aspect of untraditional and she was full of hope for life.Her aspect of untraditional became obvious when she met Homer Barron，a Yankee，a black and his social state was quite different from that of Emily.But Emily fell in love with him even though the big differences between them.She went out with Homer on Sunday afternoons driving in the yellow-wheeled buggy and the matched team of bays from the livery stable.When they went out，Emily even let her head high and let Homer sit beside her with his hat cocked and a cigar in his teeth，reins and whip in a yellow glove.This kind of behaviour was quite different from what she used to be as a 100 percent symbol of the tradition.Even the people who were willing to accept news things can’t accept it.They thought it was not proper，so they tried to stop her.They sent Baptist minister to call upon her，but he failed.
Apart from some behaviours of Emily’s rebellion to the tradition，Emily also has some rebellions to the law and to the politeness.Her manners to the people who visited her to talk about the tax and to Baptist minister who called upon her for her love affair attest this.When she saw the aldermen in her home，she didn’t ask them to sit，and her answer to them was dry and cold.She interrupted them for several times impatiently and asked her servant to show them out before they finished their talk.She refused to pay the tax and she was quite impolite to the aldermen.Although the writer did not describe Emily’s behaviour to Baptist minister，but the writer tells us that“he refused to go back again”.It is easy to get the idea that as least Emily wasn’t polite to him.It is really a surprise and a contradiction that a traditional and well-educated woman should had such bad manners. Compared with Emily，though other people in the town could accept the innovation better and were opposite to the tradition，just like Emily，there were also something traditional in the deep inside of their nature.It can be easily proved by their attitude to Emily’s love with Homer.They thought it was unacceptable and did whatever they can to prevent it.They show their pity for her，call the Baptist minister to persuade her and even wrote to her relations in Alabama.It might be a little ironic that the untraditional people can not even accept the untraditional behaviour which a traditional woman accepted.The aspect of untraditional and yearning and respect to the tradition can also be proved by their attitude to Emily.Since Emily was the symbol of the tradition，people’s attitude to Emily can be regarded as their attitude to tradition to some extent.When Emily died，all the people in the town went to her funeral：“the men through a sort of respectful affection for a fallen monument，the women mostly out of curiosity to see the inside of her house”.When they knew that there was one room above the stairs which no one had seen in forty years and would have to be forced，no matter how curious they were，“they waited until Miss Emily was decently in the ground before they opened it.”And moreover，people buried her among the Union and Confederate soldiers who fell at the battle of Jefferson.Those evidence were enough to prove that people were not only curious about Emily，but also respected her，thus it proved that people still respected and yearned the tradition.
In conclusion，the characters in the novel and their relationship are full of contradiction.It is the contradiction that makes the characters not so tedious and also the reveals the theme of the novel：the contradiction between the north and the south after the civil war.
作者简介：
龚慧，女，汉族，1988年出生，本科，湖北人，英语教育专业。
Emily was born in a traditional family and had received good education since she could give lessons in China-painting.However，regarded as a symbol of tradition，there was also something of untraditional or something of resisting the tradition in her.
First，we must admit that she was much more traditional and to some degree stubborn than the people around her.Her house is one of the proofs.“It was a big，squarish frame house that had once been white，decorated with cupolas and spires and scrolled balconies in the heavily lightsome of the seventies，set on what had been our most selected street.But garages and cotton gins had encroached and obliterated even the august name of the neighborhood； only Miss Emily’s house was left，lifting its stubborn and coquettish decay above the cotton wagons and the gasoline pumps--an eyesore among eyesores.”From this we can know that the people around her were trying to keeping to the times and the development while she refused them and insist on the ’tradition’.
Traditional as she was，there was also something untraditional in her nature.After her father’s death，she was sick for some time，but when people saw her again，“her hair was cut，making her look like a girl”.The appearance change of her just indicates that she also had the aspect of untraditional and she was full of hope for life.Her aspect of untraditional became obvious when she met Homer Barron，a Yankee，a black and his social state was quite different from that of Emily.But Emily fell in love with him even though the big differences between them.She went out with Homer on Sunday afternoons driving in the yellow-wheeled buggy and the matched team of bays from the livery stable.When they went out，Emily even let her head high and let Homer sit beside her with his hat cocked and a cigar in his teeth，reins and whip in a yellow glove.This kind of behaviour was quite different from what she used to be as a 100 percent symbol of the tradition.Even the people who were willing to accept news things can’t accept it.They thought it was not proper，so they tried to stop her.They sent Baptist minister to call upon her，but he failed.
Apart from some behaviours of Emily’s rebellion to the tradition，Emily also has some rebellions to the law and to the politeness.Her manners to the people who visited her to talk about the tax and to Baptist minister who called upon her for her love affair attest this.When she saw the aldermen in her home，she didn’t ask them to sit，and her answer to them was dry and cold.She interrupted them for several times impatiently and asked her servant to show them out before they finished their talk.She refused to pay the tax and she was quite impolite to the aldermen.Although the writer did not describe Emily’s behaviour to Baptist minister，but the writer tells us that“he refused to go back again”.It is easy to get the idea that as least Emily wasn’t polite to him.It is really a surprise and a contradiction that a traditional and well-educated woman should had such bad manners. Compared with Emily，though other people in the town could accept the innovation better and were opposite to the tradition，just like Emily，there were also something traditional in the deep inside of their nature.It can be easily proved by their attitude to Emily’s love with Homer.They thought it was unacceptable and did whatever they can to prevent it.They show their pity for her，call the Baptist minister to persuade her and even wrote to her relations in Alabama.It might be a little ironic that the untraditional people can not even accept the untraditional behaviour which a traditional woman accepted.The aspect of untraditional and yearning and respect to the tradition can also be proved by their attitude to Emily.Since Emily was the symbol of the tradition，people’s attitude to Emily can be regarded as their attitude to tradition to some extent.When Emily died，all the people in the town went to her funeral：“the men through a sort of respectful affection for a fallen monument，the women mostly out of curiosity to see the inside of her house”.When they knew that there was one room above the stairs which no one had seen in forty years and would have to be forced，no matter how curious they were，“they waited until Miss Emily was decently in the ground before they opened it.”And moreover，people buried her among the Union and Confederate soldiers who fell at the battle of Jefferson.Those evidence were enough to prove that people were not only curious about Emily，but also respected her，thus it proved that people still respected and yearned the tradition.
In conclusion，the characters in the novel and their relationship are full of contradiction.It is the contradiction that makes the characters not so tedious and also the reveals the theme of the novel：the contradiction between the north and the south after the civil war.
作者简介：
龚慧，女，汉族，1988年出生，本科，湖北人，英语教育专业。