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'Good Country' People' by Flannery is about the story of a 32 years old girl known as Hulga or Joy. Joy is the only daughter in her family and she lost her leg during an accident when she was a child and was given an artificial leg since then. Later in her life, she calls herself Hulga which is apparently the ugliest name she chose in order to rebel against her parent Mrs. Hopewell. Joy attained a degree in philosophy at doctoral level after which she comes home because of complications with her heart. This means that her mother who she adamantly rebels would be taking care of her at home. Hulga isolates herself until she meets a Bible salesman known as Manly Pointer who is held highly by Joy's mum as 'good country people.' When Manly Pointer …show more content…
Freeman was very nosy in the whole world but still, Mrs. Hopewell chose to regard them as 'good country people.' Which is pretty much naïve and nothingness altogether coupled with her own beliefs and sayings (Simons, p.67). Her sayings and strongly held beliefs guide her into reshaping the Freemans and her daughter through lines such as no one is hurt by a smile or that people that delve into the brighter sides of things are beautiful even when they really are not naturally (Sustana, p.1). This may be offensive to some people but on another perspective, it may be a way of encouraging the people she feels are unhappy. And perhaps her way of handling things may be derived from her own name 'hope.' She therefore tries to give hope to those she feels need it such as her …show more content…
Hopewell's principles are however aggressively rejected by her daughter Hulga who intensionally changes her name legally from Joy to Hulga to annoy her mother and even wishes to be far away from 'good country people' that her mother has brought into her life, were it not for her heart condition (Sustana, p.1). According to Thorburn (p.4), Hulga is an anagram for the word 'laugh' which means that if her mother were knowledgeable and smart, she would not even be annoyed by the name. She often imagines herself disputing her mothers' clichés using her Ph.D. in philosophy and her atheism thoughts. However, her opposing ideas all seem to end up in nothingness just like her mother which drives them to the same level despite their different educational
Mrs. Freeman wants to be an authority on everyone else's personal business. She is never shy of sharing the details of her daughters' lives with Mrs. Hopewell. I get the impression that she tells anyone that she meets the intimate details of the lives of Glynese, Carramae, Mrs. Hopewell, and Joy-Hulga. Being a poor tenant farmer's wife, her only weapon is her speech (Enjoiras 36). In order to compete with Mrs. Hopewell, she must be constantly on the look-out for ways to subtly one-up her in the course of their conversations. Asals describes their conversations as "hackneyed one-upmanship" (99). For example, the way they speak to each other one rnorning goes like this:
“Good Country People” is a story about Joy Hopewell, a very well educated young woman living in the rural south. Joy lost a leg in a hunting accident when she was ten and since then had been forced to wear a wooden replacement. She also had a weak heart and it was this affliction that forced her to remain amongst these “good country people” whom she considered to be intellectual inferiors. Though she had great confidence in her intelligence she had very little self-esteem. Joys’ handicap made her feel ugly, so ugly that much to her mothers’ dismay, she had her name legally changed to the ugliest one she could think of, Hulga. One day a traveling bible salesman named Manley Pointer made a sales call and ended up having dinner with the family.
Hopewell’s daughter, Joy who renames herself to Hulga. Hulga who is also like Phoenix, a victim of circumstances, is highly educated, was shot in the leg while young, and thus has a wooden leg and is also sick in that she has a weak heart. Hulga, goes through these circumstances and takes them negatively, she is seen as not only rude but also always cross and insensitive to other people’s feelings or emotions an example of this is when she shouted at her mother, Mrs. Hopewell, at the table “Woman! Do you ever look inside? Do you ever look inside and see what you are not? God!” (Clugston,
Hopewell and Joy-Hulga, but also contains a humorous, yet judgmental tone in the story that defines the characters, mostly in Hulga. Hulga is considered the most ironic character in the story because of the little understanding she has of herself regardless of how well educated she is. She may consider herself the smartest woman in the story and may have pride in herself but what she doesn’t know is that Manley, a man who ironically sells Bibles and yet, is not a Christian, proves Hulga wrong in the end and makes her the one with stupidity. Using third person limited allows the reader to gather a deeper understanding of characters by using other characters that know them better than themselves. Overall, it is highly important to dig deeper into the story regarding narration by asking, who is narrating and why is his/her perception important and how does tone and irony contribute to the characters. In this case, the tone and irony gives the reader a better understanding of each individual character, both antagonist and
Joy-Hulga and Dee-Wangero share the same motive and reasoning for changing their names, to gain autonomy while changing themselves. Joy changes her name to Hulga because it is ugly like her disposition and completely opposite of her given name. Joy-Hulga is not only trying to anger her mother, but also attempt to change herself. When Joy-Hulga turns twenty-one, she immediately leaves home and changes her name in an “attempt to redirect her life,” without telling her mother until after she does so (Feeley 236). Joy changes her name to Hulga, which Mrs. Hopewell is certain that she only chose because it was the “ugliest” name she had come across “in any language” (O’Connor 190). Joy chooses the name Hulga at first because of “its ugly sound” but then perceives it as one of her “major triumphs” (190). Joy-Hulga successfully changes her name, displeases her mother, and reestablishes herself. Conversely, Dee changes her name to Wangero to rebel against her heritage and...
Freeman, mother of Carramae and Gylnese and Mrs. Hopewell Hulga’s mother. Both characters have a major impact towards Hulga’s life. Mrs. Freeman, as described by O’Conner is seen more of a realist who speaks and thinks freely. She is a very passionate woman and “had a special fondness for the details of secret infections hidden deformities, assaults upon children”, which in this case applies to Hulgas state of appearance, her deformity the artificial leg. This quote shows the bond Hulga has with Mrs. Freeman since she is very passionate about deformity. Hulga appreciates Mrs. Freeman because she helps her distinguish a more realistic view of life and the world, rather than following the same old good Christian morals. On the other hand Mrs. Hopewell, joys mother is seen as a good woman who has good Christian values. O’Conner uses this symbolistic name of Mrs. Hopewell because she carries hope with her where ever she is. “People who looked on the bright side of things would be beautiful even if they were not” (173). She is a very optimistic good Christian and follows good country people morals. She is as well proud of her ability to see well in anyone she crosses and help any situation that is in a bad state. O’Conner’s usage of indirect characters like Mrs. Hopewell and Mrs. Freeman play a role in Hulga’s nihilistic life as an angel and a demon. Both constantly attempt to influence their beliefs without forcing their opinions towards
People often feel as though their lives are not what they expect them to be so they make the decision of going out and getting an education. This education often changes the way people look at others who were in their previous situations meaning social class. The education sometimes makes people forget who they truly are because they feel bigger than the people they came up with. In the two texts, “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker and “Good Country People” by Flannery O’Connor the main characters Dee and Joy try to manipulate people even though they lack something in their lives.
The ironic quality of each character’s name is apparent immediately. Joy Hopewell, a woman crippled in a gruesome hunting accident, is depicted as bitter, sullen, and nihilistic. She is anything but well-whishing or Joyful. Her mother named her daughter because she expected her ch...
"Good Country People", by Flannery O’Connor, presents us with a look into the monotonous lives of three women living together on a rural farm. All three women are set in their old-fashioned ways, having experienced very little of life, out on the farm. A bible salesman named Manley Pointer, appearing like nothing more than simple, "good country people"(1), pays them a visit one day. It turns out that this simple countryboy is actually a brilliant con artist who scams the pretentious daughter, Hulga (also known as Joy) into removing her wooden leg, which he proceeds to steal. A great change in Hulga is triggered by her experience with Manley Pointer. Although it was a cruel scam, the bible salesman helps her to see the truth about her education and human nature. Hulga realizes that in addition to book smarts, people skills are also crucial in navigating the real world.
When looking into works of literature, some stories seem to be similar to others. They can have a similar setting, point of view, theme, or sense of language and style. However, all of these points could be very different as well and could cover different theme or style. Flannery O’Conner’s “Good Country People” and Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” have some contrasting elements, such as their points of view and use of symbolism, but their similarities in the underlying theme, language, and the setting of these stories reveal how these two stories are impacted by education on both the individual and their family.
O’Connor, Flannery. "Good Country People.” The Story and Its Writer. Charters, Ann. Compact 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/ST. Martin's, 2011. 662-676. Print.
Joy was a young girl when she became disabled. As described in the story, her leg was shot off in a hunting accident when she was just ten years old. Now as a thirty two year old educated woman, Joy’s mental state had been changed due to her disability. “Mrs. Hopewell, (Joy’s mother) was certain that she
...she has also lost the foundation of her identity, her leg. She is faced with the realization that she has been naïve all along. In her pattern of being quick to make assumptions to build her own self esteem, Joy-Hulga has not used her intelligence in a socially beneficial way.
Joy Hopewell is the name given to Hulga by her mother and father when she was a baby. This name brings to mind a person who looks on the brighter side of things and doesn’t let things discourage her. In the readers mind this name may perhaps bring about the image of a teacher or someone who works with children in a well light happy place. It is also a softer more vulnerable name, which may have been O’Conner’s intent in using the name Joy. In the story Joy changes her name to Hulga Hopewell because of the fact that she feels it better suits her personality. During her childhood Hulga had an accident in which her leg was shot off of her body; therefore, she has to wear a wooden leg that is rather bulky so by having the name Hulga it helps her to deter many people from asking questions or trying to get too close to her. Due to this accident Hulga becomes a brooding person, not very fond of company and entertainment. The name Hulga brings to mind a rather large Swedish woman who could probably break a man in half. It is a brooding name and awkward on ...
...ated and had a Ph.D. in Philosophy. She could not call her daughter a schoolteacher, a nurse, or a chemical engineer and that bothered her. These people and episodes in Joy's life made her a very miserable person. They made her hate all that surrounded her, which included flowers, animals, and young men. This is why Joy changes her name to Hulga when she was twenty-one years old. She believed the name represented her as an individual. The name was fierce, strong, and determined just like her. The name reminded her of the broad, blank hull of a battleship. Joy felt the name reflected her inside and out. It separated her from the people who surrounded her that she hated the most.