Flannery O’Connor's Christianity in Postmodern Society

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In the mist of the ubiquitous moral relativism and pluralism that appears to permeate every inch of the current postmodern society, Flannery O’Connor stands as a bastion of Christianity, unabashedly proclaiming that her Christian dogma “enlarges [her] field of vision” and allows her to masterfully craft stories with a reverent respect for mystery (Mystery 146). Even though their generation could now “face total extinction” from science, O’Connor’s peers increasingly hailed scientism as supreme and rejected the supernatural, but O’Connor maintained her Christian worldview and explicitly conveys her religious views throughout all of her short stories (Mystery 41). O’Connor, a devout Catholic and a unique writer from the mid-twentieth century, includes a “moment of grace” in her short stories in which the protagonists experience a violent and grotesque act that simultaneously brings anguish and enlightenment to the characters by “returning” them …show more content…

In only a few pages, O’Connor constructs a masterful symbolic tale in “Good Country People” with each main element of the story representing a different part of the human condition. O’Connor’s story fully encapsulates every aspect of her religion, and she employs the grotesque and the moment of grace to tie her story back to Christianity. Ultimately, despite the rise of moral relativism and a rejection of the supernatural during her life, Flannery O’Connor retains her devout Catholicism and uses the church’s dogma to shape her view of the world, giving her a firm outlook and a basis to write short stories filled with an unforeseen grotesque event and a “moment of grace” which, though temporarily brings anguish to the character, ultimately fixes his or her pride issues and allows them to humbly accept their grace and redemption given to them by the

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