Characterization And Characterism In O Connor's Good Country People

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In the short story Good Country People the author, O 'Connor, utilizes elements of characterization and point of view to show the theme of how easily we can assume who the the villain in the story is. In the beginning of the story, the reader gets the chance to pick a hero and a villain. Most of the characters get a backstory and justification of their motives in the setting. What we don 't think of is,when we can’t pick someone first hand. In many ways, the antagonist in the story was society. The two foil characters would be Mrs. Hopewell and Manley, one has the social norms and rules drilled deep in their system and the other has never obeyed a rule in their life. They both live in completely different worlds. When Hulga comes downstairs …show more content…

We all see Hulga as a grumpy girl who is always rude to everyone,"A large blonde girl had an artificial leg"(461) instead, what we don 't fully understand her whole character. It 's the 1950 's, she has no kids, she 's not married, she has physical disability that everyone can see, she has a full education, and she has a heart disease. The readers see her as someone who’s being rude for no reason, but her bitterness for the world is understandable. The place she lives in hasn 't given her a chance to be normal. She 's given up pretending she 's going to be okay when being told "with the best care, [Hulga] might see 45"(463). Hulga is 37, and if she 's lucky she might get to 45. Having her days numbered, anyone could agree is terrifying, that 's when she started to go into a mental coma. Her only comfort was her education, how much she was able to know. When Manley came along, he gave her comfort that showed how alone she really felt. No one took their time to understand Hulga’s situation, all she had been given was pity from strangers. Manley woke her up mentally. He showed her how the other side lived, what it was like to not be a zombie in their society. She believed everyone was the same, with the same purpose, until Manley showed her that you don 't have to live by the

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