Sunday, March 4, 2012
"and Other Stories"???
As I hope you all are aware, Go Down, Moses and A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories are both collections of short stories. In 1942, Go Down, Moses was originally published as Go Down, Moses and Other Stories, before Faulkner addressed his editors and forced them to change it in 1949 for obvious reasons. Although they can be read and appreciated as individual works (for example The Bear), his stories not only are about the same characters and set in the same 'mythical county', but they share themes their significant themes and motifs. In the four stories of Flannery's that we have read so far, the connections between them are far less obvious as the characters, locations, and plots do not match, but I believe that, like Faulkner, Flannery could eliminate the "and Other Stories" from her title because the stories are interconnected through her continued use of motifs and themes. Flannery uses motifs/metaphors relating to the sun throughout her stories. For example, in "The River", Flannery speaks often of the sun in all turning points of the story, and she draws much attention to it. As Bevel enters the river for the last time, the "sky was a clear pale blue, all in one piece except for the hole the sun made"(48). As he leaves his house for the river, "The sun was pale yellow ans high and hot"(47). In each case, the sun mirrors the plot and is steeped in symbolism. Flannery uses this also in "The Life You Save May be Your Own", as the plantation belonging the mother and Lucynell is infused with the sunset which becomes heavily interconnected with the character of Mr. Shiftlet. Also, the stories all focus on the sense of desperation asscociated with religion, and religion is the theme that most of the stories are centered around. Stylistically, Flannery forms a 'pantaloon' if you will of the female characters in each of her stories by referring to them as 'the grandmother', 'the mother', 'the daughter', or 'the wife', placing them in highly symbolic roles that address gender and the past in the stories. These are just a few of the connections between the superficially unrelated stories in "A Good Man Is Hard to FInd and Other Stories", which in my opinion could really do without the "and Other Stories".
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I think that's a great observation to make Maddy--we can begin to consider why short stories are the most effective vehicle for O'Connor. I agree that these each stand on their own feet more than the F'ner. Also, good points about the 'stock' characters--we'll look at O'Connor's use of humor in class today.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Maddy that Flannery O'Conner's collection of stories could stand together under the title A Good Man is Hard to Find because the essential social commentary and thematic elements that Flannery is trying to make are apparent in each story. The most striking parallel within all these stories is irony of religion and traditional social values. Flannery makes a mockery of religion and religious convictions in The River when Harry drowns himself in his search for God and counting in the world and Good Country People with the character of Manley Point and his symbolic hollow bibles and shows the foolishness of racism and discrimination in The Artificial N***er. This parallel is very apparent between A Good Man is Hard to Find and Good Country People when the grandmother repeats "You're a good person" and Hulga insists "You're a good Christain". Flannery uses the extreme irony in these situations to show the ridiculousness of traditional values. Similarly to Faulkner in Go Down, Moses, Flannery uses the ambiguity of time period, setting and character to make universally applicable scenarios in each story. By exploring the complex and unique developments in the South at this important period in history, Flannery can use each perspective to give a cohesive overview and commentary on the South. Therefore, her point of proving truths through humor and irony shines through in each story, which shows that they could all be united under the title of A Good Man is Hard to Find.
ReplyDeleteAnother theme that I found very apparent was the struggle with identity. In The River Harry tells Mrs. Connin that his name is Bevel. Harry/Bevel appears to take on two very different personalities that are in stark contrast to each other. As Harry, he is the son of two very troubled parents in a home where he is neglected. As Bevel he "counts." When Harry returns home the narrator refers to him as Harry but immediately after leaving to go back to the river it switches to Bevel. This also brings up the question of how heavily does your religion influence your identity. The main difference between Bevel and Harry is that the boy was baptized as Bevel and not as Harry. In the Good Country there also seems to be a conflict in identity or more specifically perceived identity again having to do with religion. Manley is thought to be "a good Christian" bible salesman but is actually a con-artist. These are just two of the examples where characters internally struggle with their identity or where they have a perceived identity that turns out to be very different than their true selves.
ReplyDeleteAnother theme that I found very apparent was the struggle with identity. In The River Harry tells Mrs. Connin that his name is Bevel. Harry/Bevel appears to take on two very different personalities that are in stark contrast to each other. As Harry, he is the son of two very troubled parents in a home where he is neglected. As Bevel he "counts." When Harry returns home the narrator refers to him as Harry but immediately after leaving to go back to the river it switches to Bevel. This also brings up the question of how heavily does your religion influence your identity. The main difference between Bevel and Harry is that the boy was baptized as Bevel and not as Harry. In the Good Country there also seems to be a conflict in identity or more specifically perceived identity again having to do with religion. Manley is thought to be "a good Christian" bible salesman but is actually a con-artist. These are just two of the examples where characters internally struggle with their identity or where they have a perceived identity that turns out to be very different than their true selves.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Maddy that the stories share much in common. I think that religion ties the stories together more than anything. I would have to disagree that O'Connor is mocking religion in The River or Good Country People. I actually think that each story heavily shows O'Connor's devoutness, and her belief that religion holds great meaning. (I think the idea that O'Connor believes religion to be of utmost importance by the background information: she was an extremely devout Catholic). Harry feels no worth when in the house where his parents live. However, when he is baptized, he "counts" and feels a connection to religion, and even keeps the new name with which he was baptized. After returning home and feeling worthless again, Bevel chooses the religious life over the life with his parents. He chooses to find the Kingdom of Christ (not really knowing what this Kingdom is), and even though he drowns, he is still going to heaven (at least I think..). In addition, Good Country People reveals O'Connor's views on how one lives when they lack faith. Mrs. Hopewell has been keeping her Bibles in the attic (uh oh) and even though she is a good person, she fails to show her daughter compassion and understanding when Hulga needs it most. Hulga thinks of herself as superior to her family and to Manley because of her intellectualism, and gets herself into quite the pickle when she tries to prove ole Manley has an inferior mind. And as for Manley, he doesn't believe in anything, as he tells Hulga... except the passion for his blossoming collection of prostheses. Those who lack faith, if I am not mistaken, are missing a piece of the puzzle in Ms. O'Connor's eyes.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everyone that the "other stories" is not necessary but each of these short stories could stand on their own. They are tied together with motifs and themes but each story brings in a new idea to add to what we already know. Along with religion and tradition, the endings of all the stories relate to one another. Flannery O'Connor has a unique style of writing where she ends each short story tragically. A Good Man is Hard to Find ends with the grandmother being “shot three times through the chest” after the rest of the family dies and after that, each story ends on a grim note and very abruptly with no resolution. I think that this ties in the theme of “A Good Man is Hard to Find” because in each story, the men turn out to be bad and their fate is usually death. O’Connor uses these adverse endings to show that most men don’t turn out well and a happy, fulfilling life is very uncommon.
ReplyDeleteAs Maddy said, O'Connor uses many themes and motifs which tie the stories together in order to create a series. However, one of the greatest (and probably most obvious) differences between the two books is that O'Connor's does not use the same characters in each of her stories to prove her point. I do agree, though, that they are at least tied together enough to do without the "and other stories." In each part, I continually find myself searching for the "good man" that O'Connor mentions in her first story. To me, it seems like that story set the stage for the rest to come. Instead of moving through a long and twisted plot, we move through each part and learn new themes and motifs as opposed to new relationships. As Nellie mentioned, Christianity holds a great presence in many of the stories. Though initially I believed O'Connor to be mocking religion, I soon second guessed myself when remembering her history. I struggle to find where I stand as I waffle between her mocking religion, or her extreme devoutness taking its role. Katherine analyzed the scene in "The River" where Bevel drowned himself, trying to make his way to the Kingdom. Either O'Connor is making her point that religion is everything--a source of reason, value, acceptance--or she is saying that religion is not everything it seems to be. Maybe she is trying to tell her readers that there is a medium which should be found according to the person, one which does not result in death (or possible suicide), but one that also does not renounce religion all together.
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