Introduction：Miss Emily is an eccentric spinster whohad imprisoned herself in the archaic family mansion for almost half a century。The townspeople of Jefferson continue to gossip about her and her odd relationships with her father and her lover，but no one really knows what truly happens between her and her lover。Her death eventually gives a chance for the curious townspeople to find out the secret。
Ⅰ
1 When Miss Emily Grierson died，our whole 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，which no one save an old manservant—a combined gardener and cook—had seen in at least ten years。
评注：这篇小说是通过镇上一个居民之口讲述的。这个人作为贯穿小说始终的一种成分，反映出公众对艾米莉小姐的态度。因为艾米莉的一种贵族式超然的怪癖态度，她的生活受到镇上人的关注。
2 It was a big，squarish frame house that had once been white，decorated with cupolas and spires and scrolled balconies in the heavily lightsome style of the seventies，set on what had once been our most select street。But garages and cotton gins had encroached and obliterated even the august names of that neighborhoodonly Miss Emily’s house was left，lifting its stubborn and coquettish decay above the cotton wagons and the gasoline pumps—an eyesore among eyesores。And nowMiss Emily had gone to join the representatives of those august names where they lay in the cedar-bemused cemetery among the ranked and anonymous graves of Union and Confederate soldiers who fell at the battle of Jefferson。
评注：第2段中艾米莉家的破败的贵族旧宅与象征着工业文明的“棉花机”、“汽油泵”形成了一种不协调的对比。
save：prep。除……之外
combined：adj。组合的
cupola：n。圆屋顶
spire：n。尖顶
scroll：v。（使）成卷形
lightsome：adj。轻盈的
select：adj。考究的
cotton gin：轧棉机
encroach：vi。（逐步或暗中）侵占
obliterate：vt。涂去
august：adj。威严的
stubborn：adj。顽固的
coquettish：adj。妖艳的
decay：n。腐朽
eyesore：n。丑的东西
cedar-bemused：adj。雪松环绕的
cemetery：n。墓地，公墓
anonymous：adj。无名的3Alive，Miss Emily had been a tradition，a duty，and a carea sort of hereditary obligation upon the town，dating from that day in 1894 when Colonel Sartoris，the mayor—he who fathered the edict that noNegro woman should appear on the streets without an apron—remitted her taxes，the dispensation dating from the death of her father on into perpetuity。Not that Miss Emily would have accepted charity。Colonel Sartoris invented an involved tale to the effect that Miss Emily’s father had loaned money to the town，which the town，as a matterof business，preferred this way of repaying。Only a man of Colonel Sartoris’generationand thought could have invented it，and only a woman could have believed it。
4 When the next generation，with its more modern ideas，became mayorsand aldermen，this arrangement created some little dissatisfaction。On the firstof the year they mailed her a tax notice。February came，and there was no reply。They wrote her a formal letter，asking her to call at the sheriff’s office at her convenience。A week later the mayor wrote her himself，offering to call or to send his car for her，and received in reply a note on paper of an archaic shape，in a thin，flowing calligraphy in faded ink，to the effect that she no longer went out at all。The tax notice was also enclosed，without comment。
hereditary：adj。世袭的
obligation：n。责任
father：vt。创立，颁布
edict：n。布告，法令
remit：vt。赦免，免除
dispensation：n。（法令的）实行
perpetuity：n。永恒
to the effect that：大意是
as a matter of business：作为交易
alderman：n。市议员
sheriff：n。郡治安官，州长
convenience：n。便利，at one’s convenience 意为在……方便的情况下
archaic：adj。古老的
flowing：adj。（笔迹）流畅的
calligraphy：n。书法5They called a special meeting of the Board of Aldermen。A deputation waited upon her，knocked at the door through which no visitor had passed since she ceased givingchina-painting lessons eight or ten years earlier。They were admitted by the old Negro into a dim hall from which a stairway mounted into stillmore shadow。Itsmelled of dust and disuse—a close，dank smell。The Negro led them into the parlor。It was furnished in heavy，leather-covered furniture。When the Negro opened the blinds of one window，they could see that the leather was crackedand when they sat down，a faint dust rose sluggishly about their thighs，spinning with slow motes in the single sun-ray。On a tarnished gilt easel before the fireplace stood a crayon portrait of Miss Emily’s father。
6 They rose when she entered—a small，fat woman in black，with a thin gold chain descending to her waist and vanishing into her belt，leaningon an ebony cane with a tarnished gold head。Her skeleton was small and spareperhaps that was why what would have been merely plumpness in another was obesity in her。She looked bloated，like a body long submerged in motionless water，and of that pallidhue。Her eyes，lost in the fatty ridges of her face，looked like two small pieces of coal pressed into a lump of dough as they moved from one face to another while the visitors stated their errand。
7 She did not ask them to sit。She just stood in the door and listened quietly until the spokesman came to a stumbling halt。Then they could hear the invisiblewatch ticking at the end of the gold chain。
deputation：n。代表团
cease：v。停止
dim：adj。暗淡的
blind：n。百叶窗
crack：v。（使）破裂
sluggish：adj。行动迟缓的
thigh：n。大腿
spin：v。旋转
mote：n。尘埃
tarnish：v。失去光泽
crayon：n。蜡笔
descend：vi。下降
spare：adj。少量的
plumpness：n。丰满
obesity：n。肥胖
bloated：adj。浮肿的
submerge：v。浸没
pallid：adj。苍白的
hue：n。颜色
ridge：n。颧骨
dough：n。生面团
errand：n。差事
stumble：v。结结巴巴地说话
halt：n。停止
tick：v。嘀嗒地响
chain：n。链（条）8Her voice was dry and cold。“I have no taxes in Jefferson。ColonelSartoris explained it to me。Perhaps one of you can gain access to the city records and satisfy yourselves。”
9 “But we have。We are the city authorities，Miss Emily。Didn’t youget a notice from the sheriff，signed by him？”
10 “I received a paper，yes，”Miss Emily said。“Perhaps he considers himself the sheriff。I have no taxes in Jefferson。”
11 “But there is nothing on the books to show that，you see。We must go bythe—”
12 “See Colonel Sartoris。I have no taxes in Jefferson。”
13 “But，Miss Emily—”
14 “See Colonel Sartoris。”（Colonel Sartoris had been dead almost ten years。）“I have no taxes in Jefferson。Tobe！”The Negro appeared。“Show these gentlemen out。”
评注：从小说第一部分的描写可以看出，住在一所破败邸宅的艾米莉，由于长期与世隔绝，已经变得荒诞和古怪。她甘于离群蛰居，不食人间烟火，并且以自己的方式活在过去，拒绝改变。
Ⅱ
15 So she vanquished them，horse and foot，just as she had vanquished their fathers thirty years before about the smell。That was two years after her father’sdeath and a short time after her sweetheart—the one we believed would marry her—had deserted her。After her father’s death she went out very littleafter her sweetheart went away，people hardly saw her at all。A few of the ladies had the temerity to call，but were not received，and the only sign of life about the place was the Negro man—a young man then—going in and out with a market basket。
16 “Just as if a man—any man—could keep a kitchen properly，”the ladiessaidso they were not surprised when the smell developed。It was another link between the gross，teeming world and the high and mighty Griersons。
17 A neighbor，a woman，complained to the mayor，Judge Stevens，eighty years old。
18 “But what will you have me do about it，madam？”he said。
19 “Why，send her word to stop it，”the woman said。“Isn’t there a law？”
20 “I’m sure that won’t be necessary，”Judge Stevens said。“It’s probably justa snake or a rat that nigger of hers killed in the yard。I’ll speak to him about it。”
21 The next day he received two more complaints，one from a man who came in diffident deprecation。“We really must do something about it，Judge。I’d be the last one in the world to bother Miss Emily，but we’ve got to do something。”That night the Board of Aldermen met—three graybeards and one younger man，a member of the rising generation。
22 “It’s simple enough，”he said。“Send her word to have her place cleaned up。Give her a certain time to do it in，and if she don’t……”
23 “Dammit，sir，”Judge Stevens said，“will you accuse a lady to her face of smelling bad？”
vanquish：vt。打败
horse and foot：连人带马
temerity：n。鲁莽
gross：adj。俗气的
teeming：adj。丰富的
deprecation：n。反对
to be the last one to do sth。：最不愿意做……
accuse sb。of：指控……做
to one’s face：当着……的面24So the next night，after midnight，four men crossed Miss Emily’s lawn andslunk about the house like burglars，sniffing along the base of the brickwork and at the cellar openings while one of them performed a regular sowing motion with his hand out of a sack slung from his shoulder。They broke open the cellar door and sprinkled lime there，and in all the out buildings。As they recrossed the lawn，a window that had been dark was lighted and Miss Emily sat in it，the light behind her，and her upright torso motionless as that of an idol。They crept quietly across thelawn and into the shadow of the locusts that lined the street。After a week or two the smell went away。
评注：镇上人想要制服“怪味”的经过反映了艾米莉在小镇人心目中的地位。总体而言，公众对艾米莉抱有一种敬畏感，所以不敢向她询问出现怪味的原因，只能偷偷摸摸地开展计划。艾米莉的古怪，与社会凡俗的脱离，对现代社会的拒绝使她在公众面前有一种优越感，甚至被小镇人“神化”。
25 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。None of the young men were quite good enough for Miss Emily andsuch。We had long thought of them as a tableau，Miss Emily a slender figure in white in the background，her father a spraddled silhouette in the foreground，his back to her and clutching a horsewhip，the two of them framed by the back-flung front door。So when she got to be thirty and was still single，we were not pleased exactly，but vindicatedeven with insanityin the family she wouldn’t have turned down all of her chances if they had really materialized。
slink：v。潜逃
burglar：n。窃贼
sniff：v。闻，嗅
sling：v。用悬带吊挂
sprinkle：v。撒
upright：adj。笔直的
torso：n。雕像
tableau：n。全景绘画
slender：adj。苗条的
spraddle：v。叉开腿站立
silhouette：n。侧面影像
back-flung door：向后开的门
vindicate：vt。证实……的正确性
insanity：n。精神错乱
turn down：拒绝，放弃
materialize：v。带来物质利益26When her father died，it got about that the house was all that was left to herand in a way，people were glad。At last they could pity MissEmily。Being left alone，and a pauper，she had become humanized。Now she too would know the oldthrill and the old despair of a penny more or less。
27 The day after his death all the ladies prepared to call at the house and offer condolence and aid，as is our custom。Miss Emily met them atthe door，dressed as usual and with no trace of grief on her face。She told them that her father was not dead。She did that for three days，with the ministers calling on her，and the doctors，trying to persuade her to let them dispose of the body。Just asthey were about to resort
to law and force，she broke down，and they buried herfather quickly。
评注：艾米莉击败讨税官员和拒绝承认她父亲去世这两件事说明了艾米莉是一个将现实和幻觉混为一谈的人，或者可以说她始终拒绝接受现实。这为她后来的极端行为埋下了铺垫。
28 We did not say she was crazy then。We believed she had to do that。We remembered all the young men her father had driven away，and we knew that with nothingleft，she would have to cling to that which had robbed her，as people will。
get about：（消息）传开
pauper：n。叫花子，乞丐
humanize：vt。人性化
thrill：n。震撼
condolence：n。哀悼
dispose of：意为“对……进行处理”
resort to：意为“求助于”
break down：垮掉
cling to：意为“依附”
Ⅲ
29 She was sick for a long time。When we saw her again，her hair was cut short，making her look like a girl，with a vague resemblance to those angels in colored church windows—sort of tragic and serene。
30 The town had just let the contracts for paving the sidewalks，and in the summer after her father’s death they began the work。The construction company camewith niggers and mules and machinery，and a foreman named Homer Barron，a Yankee—a big，dark，ready man，with a big voice and eyes lighter than his face。The little boys would follow in groups to hear him curse the niggers，and the niggerssinging in time to the rise and fall of picks。Pretty soon he knew everybody intown。Whenever you heard a lot of laughing anywhere about the square，Homer Barron would be in the center of the group。Presently we began to see him and Miss Emily on Sunday afternoons driving in the yellow-wheeled buggy and the matched team of bays from the livery stable。
vague：adj。不清楚的
resemblance：n。相似之处
tragic：adj。（文艺作品或生活中的）悲剧因素的
serene：adj。平静的
contract：n。合同，契约
foreman：n。领班，工头
Yankee：n。“蔑”美国佬，扬基人
pick：n。鹤嘴锄
buggy：n。双轮单座的轻马车
bay：n。“动物”红棕色的马
stable：n。马房31At first we were glad that Miss Emily would have an interest，because theladies all said，“Of course a Grierson would not think seriously of a Northerner，a day laborer。”But there were still others，older people，who said that even grief could not cause a real lady to forget noblesse oblige without calling it noblesse oblige。They just said，“Poor Emily。Her kinsfolk should come to her。”Shehad some kin in Alabamabut years ago her father had fallen out with them overthe estate of old lady Wyatt，the crazy woman，and there was nocommunication between the two families。They had not even been represented at the funeral。
32 And as soon as the old people said，“Poor Emily，”the whispering began。“Doyou suppose it’s really so？”they said to one another。“Of course it is。What else could。”This behind their handsrustling of craned silk and satin behind jalousies closed upon the sun of Sunday afternoon as the thin，swift clop-clop-clop of the matched team passed：“Poor Emily。”
oblige：n。举止
kin：n。亲戚
fall out with sb。：意为“闹翻，跟……吵架，失和”
estate：n。不动产
represent：v。作为（某人的）代表参加
funeral：n。葬礼
rustling：n。瑟瑟声
satin：n。缎子
jalousie：n。百叶窗
clop：n。马蹄声33She carried her head high enough—even when we believed that she wasfallen。It was as if she demanded more than ever the recognition of her dignity asthe last Griersonas if it had wanted that touch of earthinessto reaffirm herimperviousness。Like when she bought the rat poison，the arsenic。That was overa year after they had begun to say“Poor Emily”，and while the two female cousins were visiting her。
34 “I want some poison，”she said to the druggist。She was over thirty then，still a slight woman，though thinner than usual，with cold，haughty black eyes in a face the flesh of which was strained across the temples and about the eye-sockets as you imagine a lighthouse-keeper’s face ought to look。“I want some poison，”she said。
dignity：n。尊严
earthiness：n。世俗
reaffirm：vt。重申
imperviousness：n。冷漠，无动于衷
arsenic：n。砒霜
haughty：adj。傲慢的
temple：n。太阳穴
eye-socket：n。眼眶，眼窝35“Yes，Miss Emily。What kind？For rats and such？I’d recom—”
36 “I want the best you have。I don’t care what kind。”
37 The druggist named several。“They’ll kill anything up to an elephant。But what you want is—”
38 “Arsenic，”Miss Emily said。“Is that a good one？”
39 “Is arsenic？Yes，ma’am。But what you want—”
40 “I want arsenic。”
41 The druggist looked down at her。She looked back at him，erect，her facelike a strained flag。“Why，of course，”the druggist said。“If that’s what you want。But the law requires you to tell what you are going to use it for。”
42 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 packagethe druggist didn’t come back。When she opened the package at home there was written on the box，under the skull andbones：“For rats”。
评注：“rat”是双关语，既有“老鼠”之意，又有“背叛者”之意。作者由此暗示，当艾米莉发现未婚夫背叛了她的时候，她采取了极端做法。
strained：adj。扯紧的
skull：n。头脑，头骨
Ⅳ
43 So the next day we all said，“She will kill herself”and we said it would be the best thing。When she had first begun to be seen with Homer Barron，we had said，“She will marry him。”Then we said，“She will persuade him yet，”because Homer himself had remarked—he liked men，and it was known that he drank with the younger men in the Elks’Club—that he was not a marrying man。Later we said，“Poor Emily”behind the jalousies as they passed on Sunday afternoon in the glittering buggy，Miss Emily with her head high and Homer Barronwith his hat cocked and a cigar in his teeth，reins and whip in ayellow glove。
44 Then some of the ladies began to say that it was a disgrace to the town anda bad example to the young people。The men did not want to interfere，but at last the ladies forced the Baptist minister—Miss Emily’s people were Episcopal—to call upon her。He would never divulge what happened during that interview，but he refused to go back again。The next Sunday they again drove about the streets，and the following day the minister’s wife wrote to Miss Emily’s relations in Alabama。
评注：艾米莉愿意与一个普通劳动者荷默·伯隆结婚，而不顾公众的看法。这件事再次说明了她拒不接受公众的普遍是非标准或价值观。这使她具有一种受人尊敬的无畏的气质。
glitter：vi。闪闪发光
cock：vt。使耸立
rein：n。缰绳
whip：n。鞭子
disgrace：n。耻辱
interfere：vi。干涉
Baptist：n。浸礼会
Episcopal：adj。圣公会的
divulge：v。透露45So she had blood-kin under her roof again and we sat back to watch developments。At first nothing happened。Then we were sure that they were to be married。We learned that Miss Emily had been to the jeweler’s and ordered a man’s toilet set in silver，with the letters H。B。on each piece。Two days later we learned that she had bought a complete outfit of men’s clothing，including a nightshirt，and we said，“They are married。”We were really glad。We were glad because thetwo female cousins were even more Grierson than Miss Emily had ever been。
46 So we were not surprised when Homer Barron—the streets had been finished some time since—was gone。We were a little disappointed that there was not a public blowing-off，but we believed that he had gone on to prepare for Miss Emily’scoming，or to give her a chance to get rid of the cousins。（By that time it wasa cabal，and we were all Miss Emily’s allies to help circumvent the cousins。）Sure enough，after another week they departed。And，as we had expected all along，within three days Homer Barron was back in town。A neighbor saw the Negro man admit him at the kitchen door at dusk one evening。
47 And that was the last we saw of Homer Barron。And of Miss Emily for sometime。The Negro man went in and out with the market basket，but the front door remained closed。Now and then we would see her at a window for a moment，as the mendid that night when they sprinkled the lime，but for almost six months she did not appear on the streets。Then we knew that this was to be expected tooas if that quality of her father which had thwarted her woman’s life so many times had been too virulent and too furious to die。
toilet set：盥洗用具
outfit：n。全套装配
ally：n。同盟
circumvent：vt。智取
quality：n。性格
thwart：vt。反对
virulent：adj。剧毒的
furious：adj。狂怒的
die：vi。消逝48When we next saw Miss Emily，she had grown fat and her hair was turning gray。During the next few years it grew grayer and grayer until it attained an evenpepper-and-salt iron-gray，when it ceased turning。Up to the day of her death at seventy-four it was still that vigorous iron-gray，like the hair of an active man。
49 From that time on her front door remained closed，save for a period of six or seven years，when she was about forty，during which she gave lessons in china-painting。She fitted up a studio in one of the downstairs rooms，where the daughters and granddaughters of Colonel Sartoris’contemporaries were sent to her with the same regularity and in the same spirit that they were sent to church on Sundays with a twenty-five-cent piece for the collection plate。Meanwhile her taxes had been remitted。
50 Then the newer generation became the backbone and the spirit of the town，and the painting pupils grew up and fell away and did not send their children to her with boxes of color and tedious brushes and pictures cut from the ladies’magazines。The front door closed upon the last one and remained closed for good。When the town gotfree postal delivery，Miss Emily alone refused to let them fasten the metal numbers above her door and attach a mailbox to it。She would not listen to them。
51 Daily，monthly，yearly we watched the Negro grow grayer and more stooped，going in and out with the market basket。Each December we sent her a tax notice，which would be returned by the post office a week later，unclaimed。Now and then we would see her in one of the downstairs windows—she had evidently shut up the top floor of the house—like the carven torso of an idol in a niche，looking or not looking at us，we could never tell which。Thus she passed from generation to generation—dear，inescapable，impervious，tranquil，and perverse。
fit up：意为“布置”
remit：v。豁免
backbone：n。骨干
for good（and all）：意为“永久地，一劳永逸地”
unclaimed：adj。所有主不明的
dear：adj。昂贵的
inescapable：adj。逃不掉的
impervious：adj。封闭的
tranquil：adj。安静的
perverse：adj。怪异的52And so she died。Fell ill in the house filled with dust and shadows，with only a doddering Negro man to wait on her。We did not even know she was sickwe had long since given up trying to get any information from the Negro。
53 He talked to no one，probably not even to her，for his voice had grown harsh and rusty，as if from disuse。
54 She died in one of the downstairs rooms，in a heavy walnutbed with a curtain，her gray headpropped on a pillow yellow and moldy with age and lack of sunlight。
doddering：adj。震颤的
harsh：adj。刺耳的
rusty：adj。沙哑的
walnut：n。胡桃木
prop：vt。支撑，维持
moldy：adj。发霉的
Ⅴ
55 The Negro met the first of the ladies at the front door and let them in，with their hushed，sibilant voices and their quick，curious glances，and then he disappeared。He walked right through the house and out the back and was not seen again。
56 The two female cousins came at once。They held the funeral on the secondday，with the town coming to look at Miss Emily beneath a mass of bought flowers，with the crayon face of her father musing profoundly above the bier and the ladies sibilant and macabreand the very old men—some in their brushed Confederate uniforms—on the porch and the lawn，talking of Miss Emily as if she had been a contemporary of theirs，believing that they had danced with her and courted her perhaps，confusing time with its mathematical progression，as the old do，towhom all the past is not a diminishing road but，instead，a huge meadow which no winter ever quite touches，divided from them now by the narrow bottle-neck ofthe most recent decade of years。
hushed：adj。肃静的
sibilant：adj。咝咝做声的
bier：n。棺材
macabre：adj。毛骨悚然的
court：vi。求爱
progression：n。级数
diminishing：adj。逐渐缩小的
huge：adj。巨大的57Already we knew that there was one room in that region above stairs which no one had seenin forty years，and which would have to be forced。They waited until Miss Emilywas decently in the ground before they opened it。
58 The violence of breaking down the door seemed to fill this room with pervading dust。A thin，acrid pall as of the tomb seemed to lie everywhere upon this room decked and furnished as for a bridal：upon the valance curtains of faded rose color，upon therose-shaded lights，upon the dressing table，upon the delicate array of crystaland the man’s toilet things backed with tarnished silver，silver so tarnished that the monogram was obscured。Among them lay a collar and tie，as if they had just been removed，which，lifted，left upon the surface a pale crescent in the dust。Upon a chair hung the suit，carefully foldedbeneath it the two mute shoes and the discarded socks。
decently：adv。得体地
acrid：adj。辛辣的
pall：n。棺罩
deck：vt。装饰
bridal：n。婚礼
valance：n。帷幔
array：n。排列，array of意为“一排……一列……”
tarnish：v。失去光泽
monogram：n。字母图案
obscure：vt。使暗
crescent：n。月牙形的坑59The man himself lay in the bed。
60 For a long while we just stood there，looking down at the profound and fleshless grin。The body had apparently once lain in the attitude of an embrace，but now the long sleep that outlasts love，that conquers even the grimace of love，had cuckolded him。What was left of him，rotted beneath what was left of the nightshirt，had become inextricable from the bed in which he layand upon him and upon the pillow beside him lay that even coating of the patient and biding dust。
61 Then we noticed that in the second pillow was the indentation of a head。One of us lifted something from it，and leaning forward，that faint and invisible dust dry and acrid in the nostrils，we saw a long strand of iron-gray hair。
评注：艾米莉去世后，来到她房间的人们看到了毛骨悚然的恐怖景象。艾米莉杀死了他的爱人，并伴着他的尸体度过了这么多年，直到她死去。她的“恋尸癖”是她病态心理的反映。她个人的意志扭曲了她的心灵，使她无视死亡及死亡后尸体腐烂的自然规律。然而，也就是这种意志让她超然于世俗的道德和价值观，使她有令人敬畏的一面。
profound：adj。深刻的
grin：n。露齿笑
attitude：n。姿势
embrace：n。拥抱
outlast：vt。比……长久，比……活得长
grimace：n。痛苦的表情
cuckold：vt。使戴绿帽子
inextricable：adj。解不开的
indentation：n。印凹痕
Comprehension Exercises
1 。What is the conflict in this story？If Miss Emily is the protagonist，who isthe antagonist（a character or force that acts against the protagonist，denyinghis or her desires）？
2 。What people and values does the narrator represent？
3 。Why dose Faulkner name his story“A Rose for Emily”？
威廉·福克纳（1897—1962）：二十世纪美国最有影响力的作家之一。他以气势恢宏的“约克那帕塔法”小说系列而享誉美国及世界文坛。1949年被授予诺贝尔文学奖。福克纳以实验派风格而著名。与他的同辈人海明威的简洁风格相反，他的作品通常是微妙、复杂，感情浓重，并善于用“意识流”和多角度叙述。他笔下的人物形象以诡诞和恐怖著称，因此，他被誉为是“南方哥特式”文学的代表。《献给艾米莉小姐的玫瑰》是福克纳短篇小说的代表作之一。小说讲述情节怪诞、诡异、恐怖，表现了福克纳创作的一贯思想和风格。
