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Religion in the works of flannery oconnor essay
The role of religion in American literature
The role of religion in American literature
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Flannery O’Connor, known for her original Southern Gothic style of prose has been titled “the master of the short story” (O’Connor). Her application of symbolism and the themes of Southern religion deem her as one of the most influential writers in American history. Born in Savannah, Georgia in 1925 and raised in the South, O’Connor was socialized as a member of the Catholic Church which proves evident throughout her writings. She studied journalism at the University of Iowa, but quickly migrated back to the South where she wrote most of her works: two novels, 32 short stories, and a number of commentaries and reviews. When diagnosed with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, the same illness that killed her father when she was young, she returned to her family’s farm in Midgeville, Georgia where she later passed away in 1962 at the young age of 39. Her works have received multiple awards, including the National Book Award for Fiction in 1972. One Reason her books translate globally to people of a Christian faith is because although different denominations exist within Christianity, many of the beliefs and traditions transpire from Catholicism into Lutheranism, Methodism, and other churches possessing Catholic roots. In each short story, she carries a message for the reader, messages of life, death, and the transition between. The two stories examined within this research paper are “Good Country People,” and “A Good Man is Hard to Find.” In “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” The grandmother, her son, Bailey, and his young family leave for a family vacation to Florida. As the grandmother convinces the family to take a detour along what she believes to be a familiar route, eventually causing them to meet the Misfit and accomplices. In “Good Co... ... middle of paper ... ...particular era. Works Cited Desmond, John. "Flannery O’Connor’s Misfit and the Mystery of Evil." Critical Insights: Flannery O’Connor. Ed. E. May Charles. 1 vols. Salem Press, 2011. Salem Literature Web. 09 Mar. 2014. Edwards, Bruce. "Flannery O’Connor." Critical Survey of Long Fiction. Ed. Rollyson Carl, 4th ed. 10 vols. Salem Press, 2010. Salem Literature Web. 09 Mar. 2014. Leigh, Davis. "Suffering and the Sacred in Flannery O’Connor’s Short Stories." Renascence 65.5 (2013): 365-380. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Apr. 2014. O'Connor, Flannery. "A Good Man Is Hard to Find and Other Stories" New York City: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1955. Print. "Pause for thought with J. John." Challenge Newsline Oct. 2004: 6. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Apr. 2014. “Some Advice.” Christian Science Monitor. 07 April. 1998: 9. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 April. 2014.
Asals, Frederick. Flannery O'Connor : The Imagination of Extremity. University of Georgia Press; Reissue edition. Athens, Georgia, 2007.
McCarthy, John F. “Human Intelligence Versus Divine Truth: The Intellectual in Flannery O’Connor’s Works.” English Journal 55.9 (1966): 1143-1148. JSTOR. Web. 22 Nov. 2011.
Dumas, Jacky, and Jessica Hooten Wilson. "The Unrevealed In Flannery O'connor's 'Revelation'.(Critical Essay)." The Southern Literary Journal 2 (2013): 72. Academic OneFile. Web. 26 Nov. 2013.
A brilliant storyteller during the mid-twentieth century, Flannery O'Connor wrote intriguing tales of morality, ethics and religion. A Southern writer, she wrote in the Southern Gothic style, cataloging thirty-two short stories; the most well known being “A Good Man is Hard to Find.”
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.
Flannery O’Connor believed in the power of religion to give new purpose to life. She saw the fall of the old world, felt the force and presence of God, and her allegorical fictions often portray characters who discover themselves transforming to the Catholic mind. Though her literature does not preach, she uses subtle, thematic undertones and it is apparent that as her characters struggle through violence and pain, divine grace is thrown at them. In her story “Revelation,” the protagonist, Mrs. Turpin, acts sanctimoniously, but ironically the virtue that gives her eminence is what brings about her downfall. Mrs. Turpin’s veneer of so called good behavior fails to fill the void that would bring her to heaven. Grace hits her with force and their illusions, causing a traumatic collapse exposing the emptiness of her philosophy. As Flannery O’Connor said, “In Good Fiction, certain of the details will tend to accumulate meaning from the action of the story itself, and when this happens they become symbolic in the way they work.” (487). The significance is not in the plot or the actual events, but rather the meaning is between the lines.
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.
In Flannery O’Connor’s stories, “Good Country People”, “Everything that Rises Must Converge”, ”A Good Man is Hard to Find”, and “The Life You Save May Be Your Own”, there are many similar characters and situations. Few, if any of the characters are likeable, and most of them are grotesque. Two of the stories have characters that view themselves as superior in one way or another to those around them, and in some cases these characters experience a downfall, illustrating the old proverb, “Pride goeth before a fall” (King James Bible ,Proverbs 16:18). Two of the stories include a character that has some type of disability, three of the stories showcase a very turbulent relationship between a parent and child, and three of the stories contain a character that could easily be described as evil.
Boudreaux, Armond. "There Are No Good Men To Find: Two Stories By Flannery O’Connor." Explicator 69.3 (2011): 150. Biography Reference Bank (H.W. Wilson). Web. 1 Nov. 2013.
O'Connor, Flannery. "A Good Man Is Hard to Find." The Story and Its Writer An Introduction to Short Fiction. 8th ed. Boston: Bedford / St. Martin's, 2011. 1042-053. Print.
An ardent Catholic as she was, Flannery O’Connor astonishes and puzzles the readers of her most frequently compiled work, A Good Man Is Hard to Find. It is the violence, carnage, injustice and dark nooks of Christian beliefs of the characters that they consider so interesting yet shocking at the same time. The story abounds in Christian motifs, both easy and complicated to decipher. We do not find it conclusive that the world is governed by inevitable predestination or evil incorporated, though. A deeper meaning needs to be discovered in the text. The most astonishing passages in the story are those when the Grandmother is left face to face with the Misfit and they both discuss serious religious matters. But at the same time it is the most significant passage, for, despite its complexity, is a fine and concise message that O’Connor wishes to put forward. However odd it may seem, the story about the fatal trip (which possibly only the cat survives) offers interesting comments on the nature of the world, the shallowness of Christian beliefs and an endeavour to answer the question of how to deserve salvation.
Whitt, Margaret. Understanding Flannery O’Connor. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1995. 47-48, 78. Print.
Web. . Margaret, Whitt. Understanding Flannery O’Connor . Ebook.
...sque, and in Flannery O’Connor’s artistic makeup there is not the slightest trace of sentimentally” (qtd. in Bloom 19). Flannery O’Connor’s style of writing challenges the reader to examine her work and grasp the meaning of her usage of symbols and imagery. Edward Kessler wrote about Flannery O’Connor’s writing style stating that “O’Connor’s writing does not represent the physical world but serves as her means of apprehending and understanding a power activating that world” (55). In order to fully understand her work one must research O’Connor and her background to be able to recognize her allegories throughout her stories. Her usage of religious symbols can best be studied by looking into her religious Catholic upbringing. Formalist criticism exists in “A Good Man is Hard to Find” through Flannery O’Connor’s use of plot, characterization, setting, and symbolism.