"The difficulty of literature is not to write, but to write what you mean."
- Robert Louis StevensonI remember the first time I was assigned my literature work when I was in semester 2 doing my BBl 3102 - A Survey of Prose Forms And Poetry with Dr Rosli. Frankly speaking the word "literature" itself was a nightmare to me. It really made me worried and uneasy. I've never done this before. How should I move myself to love literary reading. It was like coming into another world.
Of all the short stories given, the title "A Rose for Emily" by William Faulkner really caught my curiosity. The first time I read the story, I had to read it more than 5 times in order to understand the story. I taught I had already digested everything when I had finished reading it. Later I found out that I was wrong. What else should I read?? Finally my tutor advised us that we are not supposed only to read the assigned text but to think about it as well as to have response to it.
After a while, the word "rose" made me jumped into my conclusion, which relates to romance story. However this is not a sweet melodious love story of every girl's dream. In reality, love comes in many colours. Here, we can see how was Emily's judgment influenced by love.The love that Emily had for her father and for her lover are two different types and finally ended tragically.
The name of the character "Emily" reminded me of my favorite fictional counterculture characters "Emily the Strange". Emily the Strange is a gothic conundrum with a sharp tongue and a clutch of black cats in tow. Emily doesn’t like people, so the black cats became her best friends. She's cool... a subculture of one, and a follower of no one but herself. One who can stamp her foot loud enough to be heard around the globe. Comparing to Emily in Rose for Emily, we see how past events effect the main character Miss Emily. She does not want to acknowledge the fact that the world around her was changing therefore Miss Emily surrounds herself
with death. There are some similarities between these two girls.They are both firm and alone. by themseves. Nevertheless the first one with irony surrounds the ending. The other one recognized with the perfection of traits common to many introverted people: independence and isolation,
creativity and mystery.
Do we have "Emily" in our lives? I guess so.... Changing our lives is rather easier said than done.
Of all the short stories given, the title "A Rose for Emily" by William Faulkner really caught my curiosity. The first time I read the story, I had to read it more than 5 times in order to understand the story. I taught I had already digested everything when I had finished reading it. Later I found out that I was wrong. What else should I read?? Finally my tutor advised us that we are not supposed only to read the assigned text but to think about it as well as to have response to it.
After a while, the word "rose" made me jumped into my conclusion, which relates to romance story. However this is not a sweet melodious love story of every girl's dream. In reality, love comes in many colours. Here, we can see how was Emily's judgment influenced by love.The love that Emily had for her father and for her lover are two different types and finally ended tragically.
The name of the character "Emily" reminded me of my favorite fictional counterculture characters "Emily the Strange". Emily the Strange is a gothic conundrum with a sharp tongue and a clutch of black cats in tow. Emily doesn’t like people, so the black cats became her best friends. She's cool... a subculture of one, and a follower of no one but herself. One who can stamp her foot loud enough to be heard around the globe. Comparing to Emily in Rose for Emily, we see how past events effect the main character Miss Emily. She does not want to acknowledge the fact that the world around her was changing therefore Miss Emily surrounds herself
with death. There are some similarities between these two girls.They are both firm and alone. by themseves. Nevertheless the first one with irony surrounds the ending. The other one recognized with the perfection of traits common to many introverted people: independence and isolation,
creativity and mystery. Do we have "Emily" in our lives? I guess so.... Changing our lives is rather easier said than done.
