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Flannery O’Connor
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
Flannery O’Connor
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
Flannery O’Connor
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
Flannery O’Connor
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
Flannery O’Connor
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
• Similar characters:– domineering mother– daughter at a crossroads in her life– manipulative and deceptive man
• Similar themes:– appearance vs. reality– what it means to be a “good person”– gendered power dynamics
“Good Country People” and “The Life You Save May Be Your Own”
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
• “My mother was an angel of Gawd,” Mr. Shiftlet said in a very strained voice . . . The boy turned angrily in the seat. “You go to the devil!” he cried. (“The Life You Save May Be Your Own”)
• The reason for her keeping them so long was that they were not trash. They were good country people. (“Good Country People”)
“Good Country People” and“The Life You Save May Be Your Own”
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
• “ ‘Maybe the best I can tell you is, I’m a man; but listen lady,’ he said and paused and made his tone more ominous still, ‘what is a man?’ ”
• “[H]e asked what a man was made for. He asked her if a man was made for money, or what. He asked her what she thought she was made for but she didn’t answer.”
“The Life You Save May Be Your Own”
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
“ ‘How old is she?’ Mr. Shiftlet asked casually. ‘Fifteen, sixteen,’ the old woman said. The girl was nearly thirty but because of her innocence it was impossible to guess.”
“The Life You Save May Be Your Own”
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
“ ‘My mother was an angel of Gawd,’ Mr. Shiftlet said in a very strained voice. ‘He took her from heaven and giver to me and I left her.’ . . . The boy turned angrily in the seat. ‘You go to the devil!’ he cried. ‘My old woman is a flea bag and yours is a stinking pole cat!’ and with that he flung the door open and jumped out with his suitcase into the ditch.”
“The Life You Save May Be Your Own”
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
“Nothing is perfect. This was one of Mrs. Hopewell’s favorite sayings. Another was: that is life! And still another, the most important, was: well, other people have their opinions too.”
“Good Country People”
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
• How is Hulga’s relationship with Manly Pointer similar to her relationship with her mother?
• Why does she seem to find herself drawn to such domineering and manipulative people?
“Good Country People”
The Norton Anthology of American Literature, 8th Edition | Copyright © 2012 W.W. Norton & Company
“The reason for her keeping them so long was that they were not trash. They were good country people.”
“Good Country People”
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Flannery O’Connor
