Motionless as an Idol - Columbus State University

Bullock 28The idea of the relic first surfaces in reference to "A Rose for Emily" in which the hairupon the pillowcase is what remains of the community's idea of Miss Emily and the ideais cemented with the discovery of Homer Barron's decomposed body - quite literallypictured as being held in the same way a community would keep the body of a saint 3 .This posthumous preservation, executed by Miss Emily, further privileges the masculineover the feminine as Miss Emily operates, albeit covertly, within the parameters of apatriarchal system and keeps the body of her male lover as a relic with what is assumedto be fervent devotion.The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church defines relic by saying, "InChristian usage the word is applied most commonly to the material remains of a saintafter his death, as well as to sacred objects that have been in contact with his body [...]"(1379). The Oxford Dictionary then goes on to reference the association of miracles andhealing (1379). Miss Emily's community then casts her as a relic - one of the lastremaining from her generation, representative of all gentility and cherished tradition towhich the Southern community desperately clung. In making her a relic. Miss Emily'scommunity allows her to be a singularly faceted person; she exists only to validate hercommunity's need, just as typical relics exist only to serve and reassure the religiouspeople clinging to them, not the saint with whom they are associated. In turn, Miss Emilydoes the same thing to Homer Barron, very literally taking his physical being as a relic toserve as fulfillment for her need for companionship. The community, by defining MissEmily as both an idol and a relic, reveal their own ideas and even insecurities concerningreligion. At the same time, Miss Emily, unbeknownst to the community, perpetuates its3 I am indebted to Kristin Taylor and our many conversations for this idea.