Geraldo No Last Name and A Rose for Emily - Essay Example

Geraldo No Last Name and A Rose for Emily‘Geraldo No Last Name’ and ‘A Rose for Family’ are two short stories that leave any reader wanting to read them a second time. Cisneros writes his story highlighting the death of Geraldo who died in the north leaving no details about him. Faulkner on the other hand, describes the mystery surrounding the life of Emily as aristocracy declines. This paper will compare the two short stories in different aspects.Cisneros’s story has a short poetic plot that tells of how a young girl Marin met Geraldo in a dance.

There was only a brief introduction after their meeting and all Marin remembered was the name. Tragedy befell Geraldo shortly after their meeting. Geraldo’s involvement in an accident changed plans for them. Marin accompanied Geraldo to the hospital where he died. At the time of his death, he had nothing that could identify him. The narrator mentioned that even his family always wondered about his disappearance into the north.On the other hand, Faulkner describes multiple mysteries in Emily’s life as a flash back from her burial which is in the initial setting (Shmoop 1).

The story has five settings that build up the life of Emily until her death. Through the narrator’s flashback, the reader realizes from where Emily’s family is coming. Emily’s family belonged to the old system of aristocracy in south. The family that was once highly respected slowly declined in status with time. The decline came because of emerging modernity and civilization. Emily’s father exerted control over her daughter’s life and disqualifying majority of the suitors and Emily ended up lonely and desperate.

After her father’s death, the mayor excused the family from paying taxes in Jefferson. A new form of government took over the leadership of Jefferson and the instituted new projects. Homer moved to Jefferson to work in one of these projects. He later became part of Emily’s life, a venture that led to his death. Emily poisoned him and kept his body. However, Homer’s tragedy comes out during the burial. It is only at the burial that the people of Jefferson get to know some aspects of the real Emily who had alienated herself from the entire world (Shmoop 2).

Faulkner’s story is set in the southern Jefferson reflecting the changing times. Emily’s family and house act the only memories of the status of Jefferson in its past. Emily’s family represents the fading glory of the old times. The author uses Emily to paint a picture of the real process of embracing modernity in society. The story builds on Emily, Homer as the main characters while highlighting Emily’s father and other minor characters.On the other hand, Cisneros decided to tell his story a poetic style.

The poetic lines come from a narrator who expresses the mystery of meeting Geraldo and his death. Through the narrator, Cisneros helps the reader understand the fate of young people working away from home. He paints the picture of the struggle and survival of young people in search of better opportunities to support their family back home. It highlights the tragedies that occurred when southerners moved to the north.The two authors describe the life in the south and north. They highlight the fate of people moving to new places and the suspicion that results.

In addition, the stories highlight the theme of death. In both stories, death comes in the introduction ands the rest of the story surrounds the death of the character. Both stories describe circumstances that arise after death. According to Cisneros, death may result to mystery about the dead. Faulkner highlights the revelations that come after death. It is evident that the two stories are different in several in plot, characters, setting and symbols. Cisneros’s story is short and poetic while Faulkner’s story has a longer plot.

However, the two stories revolve around the circumstances arising after death. In addition, the stories depict the mysteries that govern life. The two stories illustrate the fate of individuals in foreign states. The stories are worth a second reading because they describe situations that catch the reader’s attention. Work CitedShmoop. A Rose for Emily: Shmoop Literature Guide. Redwood: Shmoop University Inc, 2010. Cisneros, Sandra. Geraldo No Last Name. Web. 14th October 2012 from http://mr-skipper.

com/shortstory_files/geraldo.html