Emily Grierson

Character Key: 
Display Name: 
Emily Grierson
Sort Name: 
Grierson, Emily
Parent: 
Race: 
White
Gender: 
Female
Class: 
Upper Class
Rank: 
Major
Vitality: 
Dies
Specific Job: 
Art Teacher
Date of Birth: 
Wednesday, January 1, 1845 to Wednesday, December 12, 1855
Cause of Death: 
Old Age
Real?: 
No
Biography: 

Miss Emily, as the narrator of "A Rose for Emily" explains, is “a tradition, a duty, and a care, a sort of hereditary obligation upon the town” (119). In other words, she is a recluse and a source of fascination for the townspeople of Jefferson, who keep a constant eye on her doings. She never married, but once upon a time in the past she had a potentially scandalous relationship with one single suitor, a Yankee stranger named Homer Barron. Although no specific birth date is available, it is likely she was born on or around 1850 - in any case before the Civil War. Her death is the point at which the story begins.

Property Status: 
owns house
Financial Status: 
financially dependent
Social Status: 
has influential social contacts (family, business, political)
Individual or Group: 
Individual
Character changes class in this text: 
Date of Death: 
Tuesday, January 1, 1924 to Wednesday, December 31, 1924

digyok:node/character/1575