Abstract
 
Faulkner’s A Rose for Emily and McCullers’s The Ballad of The Sad Cafe are two classic gothic Stories with striking traditional feature in the history of American Southern Literature. They both depict gruesome backgrounds, creat weird atmosphere, portray deformed and eccentric characters. By applying the writing technique of grotesque into their works, both Faulkner and McCullers reflect the society during their periods and express their attitudes towards people and events of that particular time. This thesis tries to explore the special cultural background and psychology of the southern people behind the grotesque phenomena by doing a comparative study on the grotesue of characterization and setting.

KEYWORDS:Faulkner; McCullers; grtoesque; Soutern Literature

摘  要

福克纳的《献给艾米丽的玫瑰花》与麦卡勒斯的《伤心咖啡馆之歌》是两部经典的哥特小说，在美国南方的文学史上有着显著的传统特色。他们都描述了阴森的环境，营造了古怪的气氛，并且刻画出了一群畸形反常的人物。通过把怪诞这一写作手法运用到他们的作品中，福克纳和麦卡勒斯都反射了他们所处社会的情况，并且表达了他们对于那段时期的人与物的看法。这篇论文通过对比这两篇文章的人物与背景的怪诞，来探究矗立在怪诞现象背后南方特殊的文化社会背景以及文化心理。

关键词：福克纳；麦卡勒斯；怪诞；南方文学

1. Introduction
1.1 Introduction to American Southern Literature
American Southern Literature (Sometimes called the Literature of American South), usually refers to American literature about the Southern United States or by writers from that region. It blossomed in the southern part of America which includes the southeastern states and the southern states along the Gulf of Mexico with its unique feature after American Civil War. It took place in 1920s and is also known as Southern Renaissance. It is a kind of literature which possesses its own rich local color and unique qualities.