Good Country People
Some can't be that simple," she said. "I know I never could." This is how the story ends and somehow, it seems to cover the entire short story. What we see is not always what we get and the way that people do present themselves is seldom what we will also find deep in their souls.
The short story presents a few casual characters, rather dull country people who live in an undetermined cluster in the countryside. The author presents Mrs. Hopewell and her daughter Joy, who had turned her name to Hulga, as well as the Freemans, Mrs. Freeman and her two daughters, Glynese and Carramae.
Our attention is drawn to Joy-Hulga, who from the beginning draws our whole attention. She seems to be an excellent representative of what Baudelaire has defined as the "esthetics of the ugly." She had a hunting accident when she was ten and has…...
She is helpless and now realizes that she is truly in need of saving. Now, O'Connor seems to be suggesting, she is actually in a position where the ord of God, which actually does promise salvation, may come to her. It speaks of the virtue of humility, which she is now in a position to develop -- not because she realizes it as of yet but because she is humiliated and may now move in that direction. This is her revelation: she is like Saul knocked off his high horse. Saul converts. But the conversion is another story -- not the one described here in Joy-Hulga's story. She may convert from her atheism. That is certainly one possibility.
For now the story ends. As it begins with Mrs. Freeman and Mrs. Hopewell, so too does it end. They see the Bible-salesman departing from a distance and recount their favorite phrases.…...
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Works Cited
O'Connor, Flannery. A Good Man is Hard to Find. NY: Harcourt, 1976. Print.
Good Country People by Flannery O'Connor is a story that illustrates how deceptive appearances can be and what errors are made when people hide behind their own cliched perceptions instead of thinking clearly about situations. The main plot of the story involving Hulga illustrates this theme. As well as this, O'Connor offers many other references to the theme via the other characters, the events and symbols in the work. An analysis of the story will show how O'Connor incorporates this theme throughout the story, while developing and eventually resolving the central conflict through the experiences of Hulga. By the end of the story, the reader has seen the many problems that arise by accepting cliched perceptions and failing to think independently. It is the plot in combination with the many references to the theme of perceptions that makes the ending effective, leaving the reader with their eyes open wide, much…...
Good Country People" by Flannery O'Connor and "Indian Camp" by Ernest Hemingway
When Coming of Age is Too Much
The coming-of-age story is a classic of literature, from The Adventures of Huck Finn to Catcher in the Rye and The Outsiders, and learning the lessons of being an adult is never easy. The journey from childhood to adulthood requires a loss of innocence and idealism, which sometimes come at a very steep price. In an ideal world, one not often found in fictional initiation stories, the steps into adulthood are trying but not overwhelming, effective but not devastating. For lead characters Nick Adams in Ernest Hemingway's "Indian Camp," and Hulga Hopewell in Flannery O'Connor's "Good Country People," the price is ultimately too steep and their initiation into adulthood is a failure. For Nick and Hulga, the revelations about the realities of adulthood are too scary and too much to deal with,…...
Hulga is just as vulnerable as anyone else is, although she does not want to admit it.
Hulga's leg also symbolizes her vulnerability and her pride. She is the only one who touches it, and it is part of what makes her unique and different. While she is ashamed of it, she is also intensely proud of it, because it, like her education, sets her apart from others. It is another way, in her own distorted manner, that she thinks she is better than others are. The author continues, "But she was as sensitive about the artificial leg as a peacock about his tail. No one ever touched it but her. She took care of it as someone else would his soul, in private and almost with her own eyes turned away" (O'Connor). Hulga is a very complex character, but so is Manley, the Bible salesman. (His name is as…...
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References
O'Connor, Flannery. "Good Country People." Weber State University. 2010. 27 Feb. 2010.
Good Country People: Metaphor and Irony
Joy Hulga is the main character of Flannery O'Connor's "Good Country People." She represents the proud, young educated student who has renounced any faith in Christ. As her mother Mrs. Hopewell puts it to Manley Pointer, the Bible salesman, "My daughter is an atheist and won't let me keep the Bible in the parlor" (O'Connor 278). Manley turns out to be both Joy's double and foil -- atheistic like herself, but also seeking to seduce her for her false leg (he is a collector of oddities), even as she seeks to seduce him to show that she does not believe in sin. The great irony is that proud Hulga falls for Manley -- only to be rejected. For O'Connor, a Roman Catholic, sin is the absence of good -- and the absence of any good whatsoever at the end of the story is what acts…...
Everything That Rises Meets Good Country PeopleThe characters and situations of Flannery OConnors stories give a unique glimpse into a grotesque world of the Southa world that OConnor used to draw meaning about the moment of grace that touches and changes characters lives forever (Fitzgerald). To do this, she often focused on the relationship between mystery and manners in everyday Southerners lives, but did so in a way that relied on exaggeration and usually some form of violence. This is true of her stories Good Country People and Everything That Rises Must Converge. In these two stories, OConnor visits the moment of grace, where some form of violence takes place and characters are faced with a realization of the consequences of their actions and the extent to which they are alone, i.e., disconnected from the higher power. OConnor does a great deal more, as well, and this paper will show…...
Feminist critics have taken a more positive view of Hulga and a more deflationary view of O'Connor's central meaning. "Nothing in O'Connor quite so flagrantly bears out the feminist theologian Mary Daly's assertion that '[t]he myths and symbols of Christianity are essentially sexist' - which is to say "rapist."(1)…it is the author's strategy in… 'Good Country People' to knock these proud female characters down a notch" (Havird 1). David Havird calls the loss of Hulga's leg and, symbolically her intellect, a kind of rape. Given the way that O'Connor frames the tale, O'Connor views it as a kind of deserved 'rape.' Manley Pointer's name supports this reading -- his manliness and taking away of Hulga's symbolic phallus or male 'member' (her leg) suggests that O'Connor views Hulga as insufficiently humble as a woman should be before God. Hulga's disdain of affection, her coldness to being kissed, and her disgust at…...
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Works Cited
Havird, David. "The saving rape: Flannery O'Connor and patriarchal religion." The Mississippi
Some of the most well-known symbols that are now familiar to billions worldwide are Coca Cola, MTV, Madonna and McDonald's, to name just a few. Although it is very difficult to explain the causes behind it, the strongest form of globalization is the cultural one. The easiest explanation one can come up with regarding this truth is the fact that culture directly affects and influences each of us irrespective of political affiliation, economic status or say, education. Culture is part of our lives and determines who we are in terms of our cultural identity. Globalization alters our perception of culture because culture was, for a long period of time, directly related to the idea of a fixed community or geographical region. This perception has changed drastically due to the complex connections that have been established thanks to the development of the means of communication whose king is, without a…...
OZ and Transition
The izard of Oz provides Americans with a text that helps them make the transition from the country to the city and sets the stage for the commodified American popular culture of the 20th century. This paper will show how, thanks to its pristine (Emerald) beauty and adventurous episodes, Oz makes "the city" much more appealing than the muted, old-fashioned of America. It will also explain why Dorothy returns to Kansas (someone has to take back home the message of how amazing "the city" is).
Baum's Oz shows that everyman can become a king if he pursues his own desires: thus, the Scarecrow is awarded leadership over the Emerald City, the Tinman leadership over inkie County, and the Cowardly Lion kingship over the forest. Each character, of course, rises to meet his own personal challenge -- but, nonetheless, these are clear examples of how the American Dream is perfectly…...
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Works Cited
Baum, F. The Wizard of Oz. Chicago, IL: George M. Hill Company, 1900.
Corey, Lecture
Ellison, Ralph. Invisible Man. NY: Random House, 1952.
Jones, E. Michael. Sexual Liberation and Political Control. South Bend, IN: St.
people commit acts of terrorism?
At one level, this question is unanswerable in the same way child abuse and rape are incomprehensible. For people who do not believe that violence is ever acceptable except to defend oneself or other innocent people, it is impossible to fathom what would motivate people to harm innocent bystanders, an element in so much of terrorism. But, clearly -- given the number of terrorist acts that occur in the world -- to other people terrorism is something that simply makes good political sense: Realpolitik carried to logical extremes.
A great deal has been written about terrorism since 11 September 2001, but this should not blind us to the fact that terrorism is hardly a new phenomenon. Although it is hard to believe that there is anyone in the world who is not now more aware of the possible reach and effects of terrorism than they were…...
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Works Cited
Armstrong, Karen: "The true, peaceful face of Islam." Time 158.15 1 oct 2001 www.time.com.
This article provides a very brief overview of the history of Islam and explains the historical basis for the Koran's discussion of the importance of armed conflict and the belligerent tone of some Islamic liturgical passages.
This site provides some basic definitions of terrorism and looks at the historical reasons that people have become terrorists, discussing how religion and ethnicity as well as other factors come into play. It also provides an analysis of the psychology that motivates terrorist actions.
People Management, The Mantra for Success: The Case of Singhania and Partner
ecruitment and Selection
People form an essential part of the organization. The efficiency and quality of its people determines the outcome of the organization. Therefore choice of right people and placing them at right place becomes necessary. Hiring comes at this point of time in the picture. Hiring is a strategic function for H department. ecruitment and selection shape the process of hiring the employees. ecruitment is the methodical process of generating a pool of qualified applicants for jobs within an organization (A Project Study on ecruitment and Selection, n.d.).
The recruitment and selection process that is currently used at Singhania and Partners is one that they take very seriously. They had adopted the notion of matching the needs of the organization to the needs of the applicants in order to enhance the effectiveness of their recruitment process. The result has…...
Country Evaluation
Pakistan is the South Asian country and was established in 1947. It shares border with India, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Iran and China. It has a coastline spanning of 1,046 km with Arabian Sea. The country has highest peaks in the world that are K2 and Nanga Parbat of Karakorum and Pamir in the northern and western highlands of Pakistan. Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi provide the major by air gateways to Pakistan. India and Iran also provides the way to reach Pakistan by train.
There are several favorable characteristics that make Pakistan an ideal country for an international business. However, the country is facing imbalanced economic, societal and political conditions since independence due to which investors gets reluctant to invest in the country. This report reviews the favorable and unfavorable aspects of Pakistan for U.S. investors.
Investors need to consider various factors before making investment for an international business. First the investors assess…...
1% and agriculture 6.0%. ("Jamaica," 2010) The U.S. is more heavily focused on services, with this accounting for 76.9% of the GDP. This is followed by: industry (coming in at 21.9%) and agriculture (accounting for 1.2%). ("United States," 2010)
Labor Force
The labor force of Jamaica is currently 1.311 million people. ("Jamaica," 2010) While the labor force of the United States is 154.2 million. ("United States," 2010)
Labor Force by Occupation
The labor force by occupation for Jamaica would include: 64% working in services, 19% in industry and 17% in agriculture. ("Jamaica," 2010) In the U.S. The labor force is divided differently with: 37% working in managerial / professional positions, 24.2% in sales / services, 20.3% in manufacturing, 17.6% in other services and .7% in farming. ("United States," 2010)
Population below the Poverty Line
The total population that is living below the poverty line in Jamaica is: 14.8%. ("Jamaica," 2010) In the United States this number…...
An interesting trend has been registered in the service industry, especially in the field of tourism. One of the main engines of Spanish economy in the past, now tourism in this country faces fierce competition from Eastern Europe countries. The beautiful resorts in Palma del Majorca and Costa rava must compete with low cost sea side resort, which offer similar services at incredibly low prices. Another field which needs reforms and reformulation policy is the agricultural and fishery one, which accounts only 4.1% out of GDP, although the important political forces attached to this sensible sector.
In order to be able to face the challenges and the opportunities on the regional and global market, Spain needs reforms in most fields of activity. Unemployment level is one of the highest in EU 9.2% at the end of 2005, while the rate of inflation was around 3.4 per cent in 2005, which is…...
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Bibliography
1) Carol Matlack and Joan Tarzian - 'Spain: Immigrants Welcome', Business Week, May 21, 2007
2) 'Plain sailing no longer', the Economist print edition, 3rd of March 2007.
3) 'Spanish property - the pain in Spain', 26th of April 2007.
4) Human Development Index report, for the year 2006
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