She was not involved in the city but they still see it as “a tradition, a duty and a care; a sort of hereditary obligation for the city" (516). This has been the country's belief since 1894 and continued through subsequent generations. However, the town believes that Miss Emily is still isolating herself from the town. It would be years before the neighbors saw her leave the house. Cleanth Brooks Jr. and Robert Penn Warren propose "the fact that she cannot compete with them in their ordinary lives, the fact that she is hopelessly out of touch with the modern world: all these things make them feel superior to her, and even to the past that she represents” (525). She seems “dry and cold” (Faulkner 517), but Jefferson's citizens find this aspect of Miss Emily fascinating, making her “the living avatar of Jefferson's past” (Davis).