Flannery O'Connor - Good Country People

     I enjoyed reading the short story “Good Country People” by Flannery O’Connor.  This short story had a great meaning and it made perfect sense.  This short story was one of Flannery O’Connor’s most successful and frequently anthologized stories.  This short story was published in her first collection of short stories in 1955.  This short story addresses themes of moral versus immoral, the possibility of redemption achieved through an encounter with violence and the foolishness of intellectual self-importance.  The protagonist is Joy and she had changed her name to Hulga because that is the ugliest name she could think of.  She was injured as a child in a hunting accident at the age of ten and she now has a wooden leg which is her most treasured possession because it is a mark of her difference.  She cherishes this because she considers herself more intellectual than all of the “good country people” around her – especially her mother, their neighbors, and Manley Pointer, a Bible salesman.  Manley steals her left leg after seducing her in the loft of a barn.  Joy/Hulga aims to seduce Manley.  In losing her leg, she learns about evil, which challenges her previous belief that “Nothing” is the only meaning in the universe.  This story centers on powerful irony.  In the long run, Joy loses her faith in Nothing, which means that she finally gains knowledge of evil.  The characterization of Mrs. Freeman and her interactions with Mrs. Hopewell are very important.  Mrs. Hopewell believes that the Freemans are “good country people.”  Mrs. Hopewell also believes that Manley must also come from “good country people,” which turns out to be a disgusting misunderstanding.  This elevation of what Mrs. Hopewell considers “good country people” is linked to the theme of disgust with the world in general, which is frequent in many of O’Connor’s stories.  Manley is a liar and a fraud.  Hulga’s missing leg shapes her character.  At first she was uncertain about her wooden leg but now she respects it as her defining quality, besides her education.  She cares for her leg by herself and never lets anyone see it.  This type of approach without any faith in God is symbolized as leading to her failure.  After Manley takes her leg off, she becomes really vulnerable.  Manley steals her wooden leg and leaves her in the loft.  Her education is connected to her lack of faith in God.  In many of O’Connor’s stories the eyes are an important symbol.  In this story the eyes are used to reveal that the people whom Mrs. Hopewell believes to be “good country people” are in fact nothing of the sort.  Manley’s eyes are described brutally as he is sidetracked by Hulga’s disjointed wooden leg.  This story reminds me of the saying that “looks can be deceiving.”  Even though people may seem to be good people inside they are probably not.                                                             

"Flannery O'Connor's Stories Study Guide : Summary and Analysis of "Good Country People" | GradeSaver." Study Guides & Essay Editing | GradeSaver. Web. 18 Apr. 2011.