Objectives

• Reconstruct and explain the effect of Faulkner's non-chronological structure across the five sections of the story.
• Analyse how the collective 'we' narrator in Section I shapes the reader's attitude towards Emily Grierson.
• Explain how Faulkner uses Gothic sensory imagery — smell, decay, dust — in Sections II and V to build dread and reinforce the theme of death.
• Analyse how Emily is constructed as both victim of patriarchal control and agent of violence, using evidence from Sections III and IV.
• Write a sustained, evidenced analytical essay arguing how Faulkner uses narrative voice, structure, and imagery to explore the destructive hold of the past.

The sequence

1. Lesson 1: The Shattered Clock: Mapping Faulkner's Non-Chronological Structure

   55 min · ch. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

   Do now

   On the timeline strip on your desk, arrange the following six events in the order you believe they occurred in Emily's life, before you read the text: (1) Emily's father dies; (2) Homer Barron disappears; (3) Emily buys arsenic; (4) the smell is reported; (5) Emily dies; (6) the locked room is opened. Be prepared to explain one of your choices.

   Teacher input

   Model on Section I (Ch. 1) and Section II (Ch. 2): place both sections side by side and discuss the verb tenses and time markers aloud—like 'began', 'thirty years before', and 'at that time'—to illustrate how Faulkner intentionally confuses the reader. Explain how starting with Emily's death (Ch. 1) and following with the smell episode (Ch. 2) creates dramatic irony: we feel that something is off even before we understand why. Guide students in creating a two-column table labeled 'Narrative order' and 'Chronological order', filling in the first two rows together.

   Independent task

   Using the complete text of all five sections, students fill out the two-column table ('Narrative order' vs 'Chronological order') for each significant event they can pinpoint. After that, they will write a focused paragraph of 120–150 words addressing the question: 'Why does Faulkner start with Emily's death instead of her birth?' The paragraph should incorporate at least two specific time markers from Sections I and II as supporting evidence. It must include a clear topic sentence, two embedded quotations with section references, and a concluding sentence that connects this structural choice to the theme of the past.

   Exit ticket

   Write one sentence naming the technique Faulkner uses by opening in Section I with Emily's funeral, and one sentence explaining what effect this has on the reader's experience of the story's ending in Section V.

2. Lesson 2: The Town Speaks: Analysing the Collective 'We' Narrator in Section I

   55 min · ch. 1

   Do now

   Read the opening two paragraphs of Section I (Ch.1) again silently. Underline every pronoun. Then respond in two sentences: Who is the speaker? What do they seem to know, and what could they be concealing or speculating about?

   Teacher input

   Rewritten Text:

   Model a close reading of the sentence 'Alive, Miss Emily had been a tradition, a duty, and a care; a sort of hereditary obligation upon the town' from Section I (Ch.1). Annotate the three nouns — 'tradition', 'duty', 'care' — illustrating how each positions Emily as an object rather than a subject, and how the collective 'we' narrator implicates the entire community in her isolation. Demonstrate how to craft an analytical sentence that identifies the technique (collective narrator), quotes accurately, and connects to the theme of gender and power.

   Changes made:

   • Changed "showing" to "illustrating" for a more natural flow.
   • Replaced "the whole community" with "the entire community" for slight variation.
   • Altered "how to write" to "how to craft" for a more human tone.
   • Adjusted "names" to "identifies" for clarity.

   Independent task

   Students are required to write two analytical paragraphs totaling 150–180 words in response to the question: "How does the collective narrator in Section I (Ch.1) reveal the town's complicity in Emily's isolation?" Each paragraph should adhere to the provided structure: a topic sentence that identifies a technique, an embedded quotation from Section I, a sentence that analyzes how the language conveys meaning, and a sentence that connects to either the theme of gender and power or social class. Before submission, students should annotate their paragraphs by underlining their quotations in one color and their analysis in another.

   Exit ticket

   In one sentence, explain what the word 'complicity' means in the context of the Section I narrator, and give one word from the opening paragraph that supports your answer.

3. Lesson 3: The Smell of the Past: Gothic Imagery and the Theme of Death in Sections II and V

   55 min · ch. 2, 5

   Do now

   List, from memory, every physical detail you can recall from the description of the locked room in Section V (Ch.5). Don’t look at the text yet. After two minutes, open to Section V and add any details you might have missed, marking them with an asterisk. What does the difference between your list and the text reveal about how Faulkner manages information?

   Teacher input

   Model a close reading of the lime-spreading scene in Section II (Ch.2). Focus on the sentence, "A short time after this she requested them to dispense with the delivery of the mail," and the earlier description of the men "slinking about the house like burglars, sniffing along the base of the brickwork." Annotate the verb "slinking" and the simile "like burglars" to illustrate how Faulkner employs Gothic inversion: the townspeople become the intruders while Emily retains her authority. Additionally, examine how the sensory detail of smell connects Sections II and V, creating a structural echo that retrospectively reveals the odor as Homer’s decaying body.

   Independent task

   Students are tasked with composing a comparative analytical paragraph of 150–180 words that responds to the question: "How does Faulkner use sensory imagery in Sections II and V to convey a sense of inevitable Gothic horror rather than mere shock?" The paragraph should include at least one quotation from Section II (Ch. 2) and one from Section V (Ch. 5), clearly identify the Gothic technique in each quotation, and conclude with a sentence that explains how these two images collaborate within the story's overall structure. Students should submit the paragraph with the two quotations highlighted.

   Exit ticket

   Write one sentence explaining how the smell in Section II (Ch.2) and the strand of iron-gray hair in Section V (Ch.5) are connected thematically, using the word 'foreshadowing' or 'echo' correctly.

4. Lesson 4: Victim or Agent? Constructing Emily Grierson in Sections III and IV

   55 min · ch. 3, 4

   Do now

   Read the sentence from Section III (Ch.3): '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.' Sketch the spatial arrangement described. In one sentence, explain what the positioning of the two figures implies about the dynamics of power in their relationship.

   Teacher input

   Model a dual-lens reading of the arsenic purchase scene in Section IV (Ch. 4): project the exchange with the druggist — "I want some poison... For rats" — and annotate it from two perspectives at once. First, illustrate how Emily is portrayed as a victim of patriarchal control: the druggist demands her reasoning, she declines to provide it, yet he serves her anyway, implying that her social class takes precedence over gender expectations. Second, demonstrate how this same scene positions Emily as an agent: she does not specify a victim, she controls the transaction, and the reader later realizes she is buying poison for Homer's death. Show how to combine both interpretations in a single analytical sentence using a concessive clause ('While... nevertheless...').

   Independent task

   Students are required to write two analytical paragraphs (180–220 words total) in response to the question: "Is Emily Grierson a victim of the society that surrounds her, or an agent who acts on her own terms?" Use evidence from Sections III and IV to support arguments for both perspectives before arriving at a conclusion. Each paragraph should focus on one position and include at least one quotation from either Section III (Ch. 3) or Section IV (Ch. 4). The second paragraph must begin with a concessive clause, as demonstrated in the model. Students should underline their concessive clause before submitting their work.

   Exit ticket

   Write one sentence stating your own judgement — victim, agent, or both — and name the single piece of evidence from Sections III or IV that most strongly supports it.

5. Lesson 5: The Iron-Gray Hair: Writing a Sustained Argument About the Past

   60 min · ch. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

   Do now

   Certainly! Here's the humanized version of your text:

   ---

   Without looking at the text, jot down three quotations from anywhere in the story that you find most impactful for an essay exploring how Faulkner depicts the damaging influence of the past. Next to each quotation, indicate one word that identifies the literary technique it illustrates. You will incorporate at least one of these in your essay today.

   ---

   Changes made:

   • Rephrased "Without opening the text" to "Without looking at the text" for a more natural flow.
   • Changed "write down the three quotations" to "jot down three quotations" for a more casual tone.
   • Altered "powerful for an essay about how" to "impactful for an essay exploring how" to enhance clarity and engagement.
   • Replaced "next to each, write one word naming the technique it demonstrates" with "Next to each quotation, indicate one word that identifies the literary technique it illustrates" for smoother readability.
   • Used "incorporate" instead of "use" for variety and precision in word choice.

   Teacher input

   Model the essay's opening move on the final image of Section V (Ch.5): the iron-gray strand of hair on the pillow next to Homer's skeleton. As you articulate your thoughts, explain how this image encapsulates the story's key themes — the past literally lying beside the deceased, Emily's body aging while Homer's remains unchanged, and the term 'iron-gray' evoking both age and stiffness. Demonstrate how to craft an introduction that clearly states Faulkner's main argument (the past is not just remembered but actively inhabited), outlines the techniques to be explored (non-linear structure, collective narrator, Gothic imagery), and concludes with a clear thesis statement instead of posing a question.

   Independent task

   Write a 500–600 word analytical essay addressing the question: "How does Faulkner use narrative voice, structure, and Gothic imagery to explore the destructive power of the past in 'A Rose for Emily'?" Your essay should start with an introduction that presents a thesis statement identifying at least two techniques. Include a paragraph discussing the collective 'we' narrator in Section I (Ch. 1), incorporating at least one embedded quotation. Follow this with a paragraph on the non-chronological structure, providing evidence from at least two different sections. Next, dedicate a paragraph to Gothic imagery, referencing at least one quotation from Section II (Ch. 2) and one from Section V (Ch. 5). Finally, conclude by revisiting the iron-gray hair image from Section V as your closing piece of evidence. Ensure your writing is continuous prose without bullet points or sub-headings.

   Exit ticket

   Read back your thesis sentence and ask yourself: does it name a technique, link it to a theme, and make a claim that could be argued against? Write one sentence either confirming that it does all three, or rewriting it so that it does.

Activities

Assessment

• Lesson 1 exit ticket: checks whether students can name non-linear structure and articulate its effect on the reader's experience of the Section V revelation.
• Lesson 2 exit ticket: checks whether students can apply the word 'complicity' accurately to the Section I narrator and support it with a specific lexical choice.
• Lesson 3 exit ticket: checks whether students can connect the smell in Section II to the iron-gray hair in Section V using the vocabulary of foreshadowing or structural echo.
• Lesson 4 exit ticket: checks whether students can form and defend a personal judgement about Emily's status as victim or agent, grounded in textual evidence.
• Lesson 5 exit ticket: checks whether students can self-evaluate a thesis sentence against the three criteria of technique, theme, and arguability — and revise it if necessary.
• Two-paragraph hand-in from Lesson 4: teacher checks for the presence of a correctly formed concessive clause and two quotations from Sections III–IV before students attempt the final essay.

Standards covered

Common Core 11 12

• RL.11-12.1 — Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
• RL.11-12.3 — Analyse the impact of the author's choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a story, including where a story is set, how the action is ordered, and how the characters are introduced and developed.
• RL.11-12.5 — Analyse how an author's choices concerning how to structure specific parts of a text contribute to its overall structure and meaning as well as its aesthetic impact.
• RL.11-12.6 — Analyse a case in which grasping a point of view requires distinguishing what is directly stated in a text from what is really meant.

AP Literature

• Literary Argumentation (LAN-1) — Develop a thesis that makes a defensible claim about an interpretation of literature.
• Textual Evidence (LAN-1.C) — Select and use relevant evidence from the text to support literary arguments, including precise quotation.
• Narration (NAR-1) — Analyse how a narrator's perspective and reliability shape meaning in a literary text.
• Structure (STR-1) — Explain how an author's structural choices, including non-linear sequencing, contribute to the work's meaning and aesthetic impact.
• Character (CHR-1) — Analyse how complex characters develop over the course of a text and interact with theme.

AQA

• AO1 — Read, understand and respond to texts; maintain a critical style and develop an informed personal response; use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations.
• AO2 — Analyse the language, form and structure used by a writer to create meanings and effects, using relevant subject terminology where appropriate.
• AO3 — Show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written and received.
• AO4 — Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation.

Edexcel

• AO1 — Articulate informed, personal and creative responses to literary texts, using associated concepts and terminology, and coherent, accurate written expression.
• AO2 — Analyse ways in which meanings are shaped in literary texts, with reference to language, form, structure and literary context.
• AO3 — Demonstrate understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which literary texts are written and received.

IB Lit

• Criterion A — Analytical knowledge and understanding: demonstrate detailed knowledge of the text and its literary features, including narrative voice and structure.
• Criterion B — Response to the question: develop a focused, well-supported argument in response to the essay question.
• Criterion C — Organisation and development: structure the essay with a clear introduction, developed body paragraphs, and a conclusion that synthesises the argument.