A Charming Old Maid

A CHARMING OLD MAID

The aristocratic family of the Grierson’s, apparent icon of prestige and distinction in the town of Jefferson, ended up assuming a rather bizarre appearance as a consequenceof the intense controversy originated from Miss Emily Grierson, the so commented town spinster. The constant displays of eccentricity and superiority of the old maid entertained the curious minds ofthe inhabitants, giving them never-ending conversation subjects beginning with the usual phrase: ¡Poor Emily! Even though it was not always been like that, the factor of bizarreness and superiority hasalways been present in the house of the Grierson’s. In younger days, when Emily has not become yet the hermit she was, the strict and supervising hand of his father kept a deep control over her,insisting on the idea that none of Emily’s prospects were good enough for her beloved daughter. Based on that irrational belief, she created for herself a personal image of imperviousness and hostilitythat built a rigid barrier that inexorably lead her to solitude and insanity. After her father’s death followed by the apparent abandonment from his lover, Homer Barron, the first sign of insanity cameinto sight, when she began disappearing sporadically in the shadows of her lonely shelter.
With the beginning of the work of paving the sidewalks in the town of Jefferson, an outgoing foremancalled Homer Barron arrived to town. With that sudden arrival, a strong relationship began to grow between him and Miss Emily. Almost instantaneously, nosy people began analyzing and judging the new bondand women in town considered that Emily was lowering her standards in great measure at the moment of agreeing to date a day laborer. Therefore, they attributed this act to the desperation or lonelinessshe might have been experiencing as an over-thirty-year-old spinster. The couple started to frequent themselves very often, to the point that everyone in town believed that they were going to marry...