Evidence that I need to sleep:

"We did not say she was crazy then. We believed she had to do that" ("A Rose for Emily," 28).

This is not going to be one of my most profound blog posts. I would just like to express my confusion and theories about the conflicts within these three short stories. Specifically, I'm going to try to identify the protagonists and the antagonists of all of the stories, which is mostly speculative and kind of difficult for me. I don't expect these to be completely accurate. Then, I will pose a question about "A Rose for Emily."

How I Met My Husband:

• Protagonist: Edie (the central character -- this one is easy to identify)
• Antagonist: Herself (maybe? Specifically, Edie's past self before she became "wiser")

Interpreter of Maladies:

• Protagonist: Mr. Kapasi (alternatively, Mrs. Das, as a lot of action revolves around her)
• Antagonist: Umm, himself (an internal conflict about Mrs. Das, perhaps; if the protagonist is Mrs. Das, I would say the antagonist is herself, as well, due to her unstable family life)

A Rose for Emily:

• Protagonist: Emily (alternatively, the town as a collective "we," but the action revolves more around Emily, I think)
• Antagonist: The town ("we"), who always seem to be working against her (alternatively, Emily if the town is the protagonist)

Here's my question. Let's say that the protagonist of "A Rose for Emily" is indeed Emily. Recalling that the book defines a "happy ending" as the solving of the protagonist's problems, and observing that Emily solved her problem with Homer by murdering him, doesn't "A Rose for Emily" have a happy ending?