Biography

     On March 25, 1925, Flannery O'Connor was born in Savannah, Georgia. When she was a teenager, her father died from lupus, the disease that would take her life before she was forty. She attended the University of Iowa and published her first shorty story in 1946 called "The Geranium." She wrote novels, but she is most famous for her short stories. I found it interesting that each of O’Conner’s stories contains the idea of living spiritually while being in a secular world (Meyer 351). She incorporated into her stories Catholicism and Protestantism that was found in the South. However, readers of all religious thought can appreciate her stories because she addresses the defeat man experiences (Meyer 355). O’Connor was diagnosed with lupus when she was twenty-five. After her diagnosis, she went to live at her mother's farm where she took care of peacocks (Meyer 351). O'Connor battled this disease for over ten years, and died in 1964 (Meyer 350). O’Connor did not think her life was worthy of a biography because it was not very exciting (Meyer 351). However, I think we can learn a lot from her simple life.

References

"Flannery O'Connor Biography." Www.biography.com. N.p., 15 Dec. 2014. Web. 12 Mar. 2017.

Meyer, Michael. The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature. 10th ed. Boston, New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, n.d. Print.

Literary Devices

          One literary device that O'Connor uses effectively is foreshadowing.

          In “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” O’Connor does an exceptional job at using foreshadowing to suggest that something bad is going to happen to the family. One example is “In case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once that she was a lady” (O’Connor 357). Another example is “I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if he didn’t attack this place right here” (O’Connor 359). The name of the town they pass through and the description of the Misfit’s car are also examples of foreshadowing (O’Connor 359, 361).

The reader is given hints that the family is going to die because of the author’s foreshadowing. First, the narrator says that “In case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once that she was a lady” (O’Connor 357). This is a strange statement to make, and it is a hint of what is to come. The conversation between the grandmother and Red Sammy’s wife is also foreshadowing. When asked if she had heard that the Misfit escaped, Red Sammy’s wife said “I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if he didn’t attack this place right here” (O’Connor 359). This makes the reader get the feeling that the Misfit could be near. Another example of foreshadowing is the name of the town that they pass through. It is called “Toomsboro” (O’Connor 359). The town has “tomb” as part of its name; this is another indicator that death is approaching. Finally, the description of the Misfit’s car is a use of foreshadowing. “It was a big black battered hearse-like automobile” (O’Connor 361). By comparing the car to a hearse, it gives the reader an inkling that death is near.

Another literary device that O'Connor uses effectively is irony. 

One example of situational irony is in “Good Country People.” After Manley and Hulga are in the barn loft for a while, Manley opens his Bible. To the readers’ surprise, “it was hollow and contained a pocket flask of whiskey, a pack of cards, and a small blue box with printing on it” (O’Connor 378). Furthermore, Manley tells Hulga, “I hope you don’t think…that I believe in that crap! I may sell Bibles but I know which end is up and I wasn’t born yesterday and I know where I’m going!” (O’Connor 380).

                This is a great example of situational irony because what is expected to happen differs from what actually happens. The reader thinks that Manley is a Christian man who truly loves Hulga. For example, Mrs. Hopewell told Mrs. Freeman and Hulga that “…he was so sincere and genuine I couldn’t be rude to him. He was just good country people, you know…-just the salt of the earth” (O’Connor 374). When Manley rejects Christianity, steals Hulga’s leg, and leaves her in the barn, it is very surprising. This is ironic because the reader thinks that Manley can be trusted, but he ends up being untrustworthy.


Here is a video with the short story reading of "Good Country People."

Perspective Reading Response

          In "The Function of Violence in O'Connor's Fiction," Claire Katz discusses how O'Connor uses violence "to reveal the need for grace in a world grotesque with transcendent context" (Katz 398). O'Connor uses violence to shatter the idea that "human nature is perfectible by its own efforts" (Katz 399). Thus, her main characters are often left powerless and recognize their dependence on Christ.

          Choose an O'Connor story, and explain how grace - the divine influence from God that redeems a person - is used in it to transform a character. 

           In “Revelation,” grace is used to transform Mrs. Turnpin. In the beginning, the reader gets to learn about how Mrs. Turnpin categorizes people. For example, in the waiting room, she stereotypes each person in her head, referring to one woman as “white-trash” (O’Connor 382). At night, Mrs. Turnpin occupies herself by “naming the classes of people” (O’Connor 383). The narrator tells the reader that she thinks “on the bottom of the heap were most colored people…then next to them…were the white-trash; then above them were the homeowners, and above them the home-and-land owner” (O’Connor 383). Even though Mrs. Tunpin shows kindness to all the different classes, it doesn’t come from the heart. For example, she says “I sure am tired of buttering up niggers, but you got to love em if you want em to work for you” (O’Connor 385). Mary Grace tells her “Go back to hell where you came from, you old wart hog” (O’Connor 389). Mrs. Turnpin struggles with this statement and confronts God and asks “Why me?” (O’Connor 393). She then has a vision where many people are rumbling toward heaven with the “white-trash,” “black niggers,” and “freaks and lunatics” leading the way while the people like Claud and herself are “bringing up the end” (O’Connor 394). After seeing this, Mrs. Turnpin “remained where she was, immobile” (O’Connor 395). The vision she has taught her that those who are last will be first and that everyone is seen as equal before God. God’s grace is meant for all people.

Overall Evaluation

                Flannery O’Connor is an author that is worth studying because she incorporates her Christian faith into her stories. Each of her stories has important themes that reveal to the reader ideas about human nature. For example, after reading “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” a person may reflect on what makes someone a good person. In the end of “Revelation,” the main character, Mrs. Turnpin, begins to understand the equality of God’s grace. This is an important theme for the reader to understand as well.  No one is better than anyone else, and we should put others before ourselves. I personally connected with the important faith topics that O’Connor integrates into her stories. After reading her stories, I spent time reflecting on these ideas. For example, after reading “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” I contemplated what the Misfit meant when he said “She would have been a good woman if it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life” (O’Connor 366). I think he meant that the grandmother would have been a good person, or even a stronger believer, if she had lived each day as if it were her last. This made me think about how I would live my life for Christ differently if I knew I only had a few days left. This is just one example of the deep subjects that I pondered after reading O’Connor’s stories.

                I found Hulga in “Good Country People” a very engaging character. I was intrigued by Hulga because philosophy and intelligence fascinated her, but she rejected God. Hulga was a very smart girl. She “had taken the Ph.D. in philosophy” (O’Connor 370). The books she read were very in depth books that few people could understand; when her mom tried to read one of her books, she “shut the book quickly” (O’Connor 371). Even with all this intelligence, however, she would not acknowledge the person who gave her that intelligence – Jesus Christ. I also found it interesting that she does not casually ignore the existence of God, but she passionately believes in nothing. She told Manley “We are all damned but some of us have taken off our blindfolds and see that there’s nothing to see. It’s kind of salvation” (O’Connor 378). Also, her mother said “My daughter is an atheist and won’t let me keep the Bible in the parlor” (O’Connor 372). My faith was challenged by Hulga’s worldview. I think I am intrigued by Hulga because she reminds me of a friend of mine. My friend is exceptionally smart and an atheist just like Hulga. On one hand, it is hard for me to understand why they reject the idea of an intelligent creator when they have such an interest in human intelligence. However, I can see how easy it would be to embrace this mindset. I, too, can fall into the trap of thinking highly of myself because of intellectual success. However, I usually am quickly humbled when I remember that without God in my life my intelligence means nothing. I think that with great knowledge comes great responsibility, and God entrusts us with intelligence so we can use it for his glory.