Stefanie A. Thomas
Professor Judith Angona
English 152
9 October 2012
Character Comparison – Two Repressed Women Both “Hills like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway and William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” center around two women who are repressed by their lives’ circumstances. However, outside of their feelings, their situations could not be more different. Miss Emily Grierson is trapped in a life of solitude, despondency, and desperation. The girl, or “Jig”, is equally as desperate, but her repression is not born of loneliness or restraint—it is the child of her freedom. Repression comes in several forms, but it will suffocate and consume you. In “A Rose for Emily”, Miss Emily Grierson lives a life of quiet turmoil. Her …show more content…

She is so frightened of facing the word without her beloveds that she would rather lie next to a long dead man than allow him to leave her. Comparably, “Jig” is also willing to put herself, and her needs, aside for the man that she loves. She is willing to set aside her doubts—even while the American begins to doubt what to do—to do what is best for them to survive as a couple. She simply states, to her lover’s dismay, “‘…I don’t care about me. And I’ll do it and then everything will be fine.’” (Hemingway 116). In spite of her fears and apprehensions, she knew that it would only strengthen them in the end and shield them from more difficulties. “Jig’s” strength, just like Miss Emily’s, is undeniable. They both processed their feelings solely based on their own merits. However flawed either of them may have been, it is evident that their actions are driven by their human need for companionship. Their love for their respective partners trumps that of personal safety and perception. They are willing to risk everything, from their health to their freedom, just to have more time with their lovers. Therefore, both stories are ultimately romantic. In closing, both women had their hindrances that repressed them terribly. Fear and love, being the main motivating factors in these stories, showed themselves in many ways and