Different Literature Elements in a Short Story Flannery O’Connor is a famous American author. She wrote thirty-two short stories and two novels. She is very famous for her short stories. One of her famous short stories is “Everything That Rises Must Converge.” The short story is a relationship between son and mother, which also holds a mother’s and son’s perspective of colored people. To develop the short story, O’Connor uses different kinds of literary elements, such as, the main character, main conflict, complication, third person omniscient point of view, and symbolism to explore the complicated relationship between son and mother. In this short story, there two types of main characters which is the protagonist and antagonist and have their …show more content…
For instance, the author states, “in spite of going to only a third-rate college, he had his own initiative, come out with a first-rate education.” This is the author’s opinion, and I see it differently. Owing to the fact that, his mother works very hard and pays the tuitions for him to college, he could get a first-rate education. Raising him alone also makes her suffer financially. So, it is not only about his initiative, but it is also about his mother completing her responsibility as a mother although he has some inputs. O’Connor also writes, “…he had cut himself emotionally free of her… He was not dominated by his mother.” This also the author thought, and I agree that he had cut himself. However, he should have some love and care for his …show more content…
Julian’s mother truly loves her son. Because of her love, she raises her son alone by working without rest. Angela O’Donnell a famous writer, poet, and professor at Fordham University states, “For all her flaws, she is a good mother—a fact he strangely resents.” Yes, he is, and she sacrifices her life for him. For example, instead of going to college, she works very hard and sends him to college. In short, we can say she lives her life for him. However, she is very racist and prejudices colored people. The other part which makes the story very complicated is the character of Julian toward his mother. He does not give any credit for things his mother sacrificed. No matter what his mother believes, she is the best mother for him, so he should not take it for granted. Moreover, he should have understood his mother’s perspective of colored people. One critic writes, “Julian, however, seems unaware of the extent to which his mother’s repetitive accounts have ingrained in him a strong connection to that historical past.” As I mentioned in the above, many people thought process is affected by their families thought, so Julian should have noticed that how much his mother’s perspective is influenced by her
...on about his life is blamed on his mother. His hatered for her "gives" him a reason to be a crtical, self-loathing person. Having the ability to tell right from wrong does not assist him in anyway. He is always looking for approval and satisfaction from the one person he accused of being in a "fantasy world". The fantasy world she has lived in for so long is now and were he will spend the rest of his life. Julian is left to fend for himself in a cold world where he is no more prepared to handle than he is a job. Finally we are left to guess whether or not Julian can make it without the one person who annoyed him so much, but stood by his side all of his life.
Choose a novel or short story in which a conflict between two of the main characters is central to the story.
Throughout all of Flannery O’Connor’s work, there are three dominant themes that show themselves: Christianity, irony, and grotesqueness. In nearly every story of hers, O’Connor is able to make a tragic story very grotesque in the way that she describes the events and characters of her story. [add more to introduction]
In her short stories “Revelation” and “A Good Man is Hard to Find” O’Connor is able to convey the oppressive and hypocritical attitudes of a Southern woman in the post civil war era. Through the actions of her characters The Grandmother and Mrs. Turpin O’Connor suggests that the that the people who can’t let go of the past are the members that are a true detriment to society. By using character foils and religious references Flannery O’Connor is able to truly portray the regressive attitudes of many Southern women like Mrs. Turpin and the
Scott, Nathan A., Jr. "Flannery O'Connor's Testimony." The Added Dimension: The Art and Mind of Flannery O'Connor. Ed. Melvin J. Friedman and Lewis A. Lawson. New York: Fordham UP, 1966. 138-56.
In the passage a servant describes the class difference between himself and his masters. He is discontent servant whose ideas about his masters portrays his belittling and resentful attitude towards them.
The central theme of Flannery O’Connor’s three short stories is irony. Her stories are parables, that is, short stories with a lesson to be learned.
Although Flannery O’Connor didn’t even live to see her 40th birthday, her fiction endures to this day. In “A Good Man is Hard to Find” and “Everything that Rises Must Converge,” O’Connor effectively deals with the two huge themes (topics) of religion and racism. These two themes are crucial to understanding much of O’Connor’s great works and are relevant to all readers of O’Connor throughout all ages.
All of O’Connor’s writings are done in a Southern scene with a Christian theme, but they end in tragedy. As Di Renzo stated “her procession of unsavory characters “conjures up, in her own words, “an image of Gothic monstrosities”… (2). Flannery O’Connor was highly criticized for her work as a writer, because of her style of writing, and her use of God. It was stated that “…whatever the stories may have meant to her, they often send a quite different message to the reader”… (Bandy). But the stories of O’Connor take a look at the way people depict themselves on the outside, but inside they are
To address some of these examples of how O’Connor uses this trope in her own writing, turn to the short story “Everything That Rises Must Converge.” This arguably has one of the most poignant
...to take it anymore. Julian's mother didn't realize this, she thought she was being "gracious." The stroke Julian's mother receives at the end is a direct result of her failure to adapt to her current setting.
Friedman, Melvin J. Introduction. Critical Essays on Flannery O’Connor. Ed. Melvin J. Friedman and Beverly Lyon Clark. Boston: G. K. Hall & Co., 1985.
The main recurring theme in Flannery O’Connor’s stories is the use of violence towards characters in order to give them an eye-opening moment in which they finally realize their true self in relation to the rest of society and openly accept insight into how they should act or think. This theme of violence can clearly be seen in three works by Flannery O’Connor: A Good Man is Hard to Find, Good Country People, and Everything That Rises Must Converge.
Determine all of the story's conflicts. Determine the major conflict and state this in terms of protagonist versus antagonist.
Flannery O’Connor’s “Everything That Rises Must Converge” is a short story that centers around the irony created through the twisted and volatile relationship between a young man, Julian, and his mother. The story deals with an intense element of hypocrisy and conceit within this relationship, and uses the tension to explore conflicting social perspectives. The point of view in a story is the vantage point from which a writer tells that story. O’Connor employs a specific point of view throughout the story to better convey its central idea to the reader and the purpose of this paper will be to explore that notion.