Good and Evil in Good Country People Essay

Hopewell’s character is restricted to the use of clichés such as “that is life” and “nothing is perfect” (O’Connor). Mrs. Hopewell’s use of clichés extends beyond dialogue. For Mrs. Hopewell, clichés represent her frame of mind. Mrs. Hopewell “implies that she has an optimistic nature and is always hoping for the best” (Kirk 73). Although harmless on the surface, this perspective makes Mrs. Hopewell blindly optimistic. Throughout the short story, Mrs. Hopewell correlates good country people to “the salt of the earth”. Mrs. Freeman and her two daughters, Glynese and Carramae, are her primary examples of “good country people.” Mrs. Hopewell does not miss an opportunity

The world can make or break us, but it depends on if they let society change your way of life and being. Innocence is a trait that we are born with they do not have enough knowledge to act in evil. It is the way people are raised, society and even human nature that enhances a negative toll on people.

The short story is set at a park by a lake. “They were up on a picnic table at that park by the lake, by the edge of the lake, with part of a downed tree in the shallows half hidden by the bank.”1 The downed tree sets the mood to be sad and dark. We also learn that the main characters Lane A. Dean, Jr. and his girlfriend Sheri Fisher are sitting very still on the picnic table2, which tells us that the atmosphere is quite intense. It does not say for how long they sit by the lake, but it says that the right sides of their faces get shaded so it can be assumed that they sit there for a while.3

In the play Billy Budd, the author, Hermann Melvinne, creates two conflicting character personalities which are portrayed as good and evil. John Claggart (Master-At-Arms) tries to destroy Billy Budd because he is jealous of Billy’s reputation and acceptance among the crew. There is also a conflict involving Captain Vere when he is forced to decide on the fate of Billy Budd after he kills Claggart.

This particular literary device is so significant in this story because it explains why Joy is considered as weak as her mother. In addition, Joy’s leg had been removed due to a hunting accident that occurred when she was ten. She was also told she may live to see the age of forty-five because she had a weak heart. Therefore, she felt hopeless and no words of encouragement. In “Good Country People,” it states “All day Joy sat on her neck in a deep chair, reading. Sometimes she went for walks but she did not like dogs or cats or birds or flowers or nature or nice young men.” This statement exemplifies a hyperbole. O’Connor does this intentionally to demonstrate how much faith and confidence she had lost within herself to express to readers her particular role and actions in the story. O’Connor also uses ambiguity in the text. “Her name was really Joy but as soon as she was twenty-one and away from home, she had had it legally changed. Mrs. Hopewell was certain that she had thought and thought until she had hit upon the ugliest name in any language. Then she had gone and had the beautiful name, Joy, changed without telling her mother until after she had done it(O’Connor,274).” This statement displayed how Mrs. Hopewell was unsupportive as well as too lenient. It also proved how weak woman were in society. It proved it because woman are usually known to be strong, independent, and confident. Identity is important, however, Hulga did not believe so. Which

For instance, Joy legally changes her name to Hulga. She changes her name from Joy because she does not see herself as beautiful as such a name implies. In fact, the narrator says, "she had thought and thought until she had hit upon the ugliest name in any language" (132). Furthermore, Hulga never wears dresses or anything nice. Instead, she chooses to wear a "six year old skirt and a yellow sweat shirt with a faded cowboy on a horse embossed on it" (133). Hulga does not believe that any amount of makeup or nice clothes can improve upon her ugliness. This low confidence directly derives from her mother's dissatisfaction with her.

Thesis Statement: In Flannery O'Connor's short story "Good Country People," the expulsion of the outside world allows for more emphasis on the symbolic nature of each of the active characters.

Flannery O’Connor shows her readers a realistic look at their own mortality in “A Good Man is Hard to Find.” The story is about a family of five, a father, mother, grandmother, and two children, starting out on a vacation to Florida from Georgia. The family, on their way to a routine vacation, takes a detour that will change their lives forever. Through the use of literary elements like symbolism and characterization, O’Connor creates a theme of good vs. evil, which can be felt throughout the story by tapping into the audience’s emotions.

One of the oldest dilemmas in philosophy is also one of the greatest threats to Christian theology. The problem of evil simultaneously perplexes the world’s greatest minds and yet remains palpably close to the hearts of the most common people. If God is good, then why is there evil? The following essay describes the problem of evil in relation to God, examines Christian responses to the problem, and concludes the existence of God and the existence of evil are fully compatible.

“Good Country People,” is a classic example of the use of irony as a technique for imbuing a story with meaning. Irony works on many different levels through the piece. Examples of this range from O’ Connors use of clearly ironic dialogue to the dramatic irony that unfolds between Manley and Joy-Hulga. However the most obvious examples can be found in O’Connor’s characterization of these, “Good Country People.” The technique of irony is applied prominently to the character’s names and behaviors to present the contradictions between their expectations and their reality. O’Connor uses her characters to explore common notions regarding, “good” and “bad” people. Using their expectations for one another, O’Connor ultimately expose their

Good Country People by Flannery O’Connor is a story with a lot of ironic elements in it. These are mostly found in the way that the characters depict themselves in contrast of how they truly are. For example, Mrs. Hopewell says that she has no bad qualities of her own, but she is a constant liar is an how she happened to hire the Freemans in the first place and how they were a godsend to her and how she had them for four years. The reason for keeping them for so long was because they were not trash” (O’Connor 247). Mrs. Hopewell is not the only hypocrite in this story; Manley Pointer is also incredibly hypocritical, fake, and manipulative. He depicts himself as a “Bible salesmen”, but in reality he is a con artist. When Hulga opens up his Bible, she sees a flask of whiskey, cards, and condoms in it. This would be seen as incredibly offensive and sinful to a Christian. According to Thomas F. Gusset, “Joy/Hulga begins to discover that the Bible

David Foster Wallace’s “Good People,” is a very touching, powerful story about a young, unwed, Christian couple facing an extremely difficult decision and the moral and religious implications that may result. As the story begins, we are allowed into the head of Lane Dean, a college student, as he sits on a park bench with his girlfriend, Sheri. Lane and Sheri find themselves faced with an unplanned pregnancy, which causes them to battle with several moral and religious dilemmas. Both of them are devout Christians who have built their moral beliefs upon God and their religious upbringing. Although torn Sheri schedules an abortion, which weighs on Lane deeply. Lane, frozen in fear and not having the courage to freely talk to Sheri about

Except, in the attempt to deal with her own anger and defeat, she becomes emotionally stunted and projects her sense of shame on Manly. After she gives up her leg, Hulga asks Manly, “Aren’t you just good country people?” (O’Connor 12) a familiar sentiment her mother had always used. This example is evidence of how a mother influences her daughter and how the child picks up on these mannerisms. Babinec goes on to explain that Mrs. Hopewell manipulates trust between her and her daughter by using sayings such as "Nothing is perfect," "That is life," "Everybody is different," "It takes all kinds to make the world," and, the most important, "Well, other people have their opinions too" (O’Connor 1-2). In reality, Mrs. Hopewell does not practice these sayings and won’t allow her daughter to be different and will not accept other people's opinions; she manipulates Hulga to create the illusion that she copes with the painful issues in her life and to suggest that her daughter should do the same. Thus, through the actions of Mrs. Hopewell she creates a continuous toxic environment that Hulga is unable to escape and the chance of a genuine connection is

Hulga is an unlikely character in “good country people” as the protagonist. The actions and beliefs of the protagonist

The title of the story "Awesome Country People" implies Mrs. Hopewell's judgments of people whom she believes she can trust. These people are unmistakable from the majority of the world, since "these days, you get extraordinary country people, you would be insightful to stick to them. She had a ton of inclusion with squander."