A Rose for Emily

by William Faulkner

A Rose for Emily: Foreshadowing 2 key examples

Definition of Foreshadowing

Foreshadowing is a literary device in which authors hint at plot developments that don't actually occur until later in the story. Foreshadowing can be achieved directly or indirectly, by making... read full definition
Foreshadowing is a literary device in which authors hint at plot developments that don't actually occur until later in the story. Foreshadowing can be achieved... read full definition
Foreshadowing is a literary device in which authors hint at plot developments that don't actually occur until later in the... read full definition
Section 2
Explanation and Analysis—Miss Emily's Madness:

In the story, Faulkner foreshadows Miss Emily's demise and a future in which she becomes mad. In the passage below, after experiencing a smell coming from Miss Emily's house, the townspeople recall how Miss Emily's great-aunt had gone mad:

That was when people had begun to feel really sorry for her. People in our town, remembering how old lady Wyatt, her great-aunt, had gone completely crazy at last, believed that the Griersons held themselves a little too high for what they really were. 

Section 3
Explanation and Analysis—Homer Barron's Death:

Homer Barron's death is foreshadowed largely through Miss Emily's actions and the nonlinear fashion in which the story relays them. The gradual and disordered revealing of information makes it seem as if there is often a hidden intent behind Miss Emily's actions. One example is when Miss Emily goes to buy arsenic:

Miss Emily just stared at him, her head tilted back in order to look him eye for eye, until he looked away and went and got the arsenic and wrapped it up. The Negro delivery boy brought her the package; the druggist didn't come back. When she opened the package at home there was written on the box, under the skull and bones: "for rats."

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