"And They Lived Happily Ever After." This picturesque phrase can hardly be described as a typical ending to a Flannery O'Connor work. In a "standard" O'Connor play, one might expect to find several allusions to religion, sardonic situations and demented characters. “The Life You Save Can Be Your Own” illustrates a perfect example of O'Connor's writing style. This story depicts the opposite of a fairy tale by introducing irony into the situations of the foster mother, the beautiful and innocent young woman, the hero who saves the woman and the romantic setting of a fairy tale kingdom. fairies. Say no to plagiarism. . Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Flannery O'Connor's works are often considered grotesque, bigoted, or sarcastic. Many critics believe this style comes from his misery in life. At the age of ten, his father died of the illness he was later diagnosed with. She leads a solitary life on a remote farm in Milledgeville, Georgia. Although she does not always represent a cheerful and optimistic person, she achieves personal triumphs through her writings and awards. She maintains a lot of courage and brilliance throughout her life. Although she welcomes many guests to her home, writes corresponding letters to friends and experiences happy times, she remains a rather serious intellectual. His lupus diagnosis had an effect on his lifestyle but not on his writing. One cannot conclude that Flannery O'Connor writes about such grotesque subjects because of her own misery and self-pity following her lupus diagnosis; As a Catholic and a uniquely talented writer, she is rather fascinated by these controversial topics. If she were personally upset and distraught about her illness, she would make no effort to explain why such questions interest her. She collects these letters and publishes them in a book. In one particular letter, O'Connor answers the question of why she writes about such topics. She clearly states: “I write the way I do because (not however) I am Catholic. This is a fact and nothing covers it better than a simple statement. However, I am a Catholic particularly possessed of the modern conscience [...]" (F. O'Connor 90). In saying this, everything in her writings comes into perspective. As a devoted Catholic, she centers her life about Christ, who is the Truth and the Light By doing this, one is more able to see the black and white matters of life, seeing the good and the evil, O'Connor writes conscientiously about the unpleasant in reason. of her modern consciousness fascinated by grotesque subjects Her ability to see such provocative themes is a kind of gift she receives from following the Christian faith. light of their Christian faith will, in our time, have the sharpest eye for the grotesque, the perverse and the unacceptable" (F. O'Connor 68). the subjects of almost all of his published works. Every character, every setting, and every theme deals with problems and unpleasant situations that one could never imagine. His perception of darkness and evil comes directly from the Bible. Its unpleasant characters seem to have traits such as: [...] self-loving, greedy, proud, boastful, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, ungodly, without natural affection, truce breakers, false accusers, incontinent , fierce. , despisers of those who are good, treacherous, heady,puffed up with pride, lovers of pleasures more than of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. (2 Tim 3:2-5) Men of this description at one point or another become the characters in O'Connor's stories. When someone, like Miss O'Connor, knows the good and evil of the world, but nevertheless chooses to write about subjects as mentioned, it is because it "[...] gives an extra dimension in which work” (W. O’Connor 70). An author doesn't have much to work with when the characters are ideal Christians in a setting such as a Southern "Bible Belt" town. O'Connor realizes that for any divergence and conflict, or for anything to happen in his stories, the characters must go through trying experiences. As the philosopher Heraclitus said, “the way up is the way down.” O'Connor takes his characters through all the ugliness of the earth so that everyone can get a glimpse of it. As one professor writes: There are no shortcuts to beauty or insight. We must pass through the finite, the limited, the defined, without omitting anything, for fear of omitting some of the powers of being in the flesh... The finite is not in itself a generality, to encompass many just one shot. . On the contrary, it contains many forms, circuitous paths, intelligence, powers, diversities and people, and we must not go too quickly from the many to the one. (Quinn 110) O'Connor's particular details are not used in vain. Paying individual attention to each fictional element included in her stories, she uses ugliness to contrast beauty. She can use liars to illustrate the truth. O'Connor's brilliant insight comes after the painstaking and somewhat unforgiving challenges the characters go through. What may seem grotesque serves to compare the links between the natural, the earthly and the living with the supernatural, the celestial or the dead. Fittingly, “none of her characters are sentimentalized, for she sees potential evil in all human beings, and she is constantly aware of incongruities in human actions” (W. O'Connor 70-71). Why would we reduce the amount of conflict that takes place in history? O'Connor considers that the prospective outcome of each situation contains a bit of information to help better understand the ending. Its themes and morals are often linked to catechism such as original sin, salvation, grace, mercy and forgiveness of Christ. His character Tom L. Shiftlet, a lesser villain compared to O'Connor's other monstrosities, subtly compares himself to mercy, salvation, and resurrection. Therefore, his writing about the grotesqueness of the characters and his allusion to religion are written because of his unique wit, his fascination with carnal sin, and his overwhelming awareness of Catholicism. The small details of his works are often a projection of his self-image, subtext or comic irony. O'Connor uses finite, amoral and grotesque characters and setting so that one can better understand the truth or moral conscience at an optimal level. Once the reader gets a glimpse of the evil in the world, they will more easily understand the good, the light, and the truth. As critics often find insinuations about the life of Christ, one can safely conclude that such a style of writing is directly related to Miss O'Connor's firm belief in Catholicism. In “The Life You Save Can Be Your Own,” the beautiful, innocent young woman in this story in by no means presents the image of a typical fairy tale marvelous enchantress. When we are asked to imagine the heroine of the story, weWe can think of a girl who "[...] has long rose-gold hair and eyes as blue as a peacock's neck" (F. O'Connor 623). ). Such an angelic peculiarity is perhaps the only positive trait that Lucynell possesses. O'Connor's mention of the peacock is significant. It symbolizes the beauty of the peacock in the form of cherubic elegance. Or as one critic believes, "[...] the peacock symbolizes the divine nature of Christ [...]" (Hyman 344). By placing this minute detail in Lucynell's description, O'Connor alludes to her characteristics as that of a celestially innocent person. Yet, because O'Connor does not create perfect characters, she projects her own negative image to balance Lucynell's image. Therefore, because of this negative record, Lucynell will never accomplish the feat of being the stunningly beautiful and innocent woman who charms throughout life. The only person she charms is someone who doesn't have the pleasure of seeing her awake. As the newlyweds sit in the restaurant, the young man comments, “'She looks like an angel of God'” (F. O'Connor 627). Would the boy make the same remark if he saw her wake up from her sleep? Most likely, he would observe a clumsy, obnoxious girl who can't speak or compose herself in public. Lucynell may be a beautiful young woman when she sleeps, but doesn't the beautiful fairy tale heroine charm her way through life when she is awake? Unlike the charismatic beauty of a mythical woman, Lucynell feels neither shame nor embarrassment when she strikes strange poses when approaching complete strangers, nor does she attempt to hypnotize a man. However, she has the ability to rule out any possibility of marriage. Who can fall in love with “[t]he tall, pink-faced girl [who] follows him everywhere, saying “Burrttddt ddbirrrttdt,” and clapping her hands” (F. O'Connor 624)? Lucynell's misfortune almost gives a feeling of sympathy as we understand that she will never become a beautiful and innocent heroine. Although Lucynell does not portray a character the way one would hope for her to be portrayed, she remains the only link to innocence and salvation in the story. As one critic points out: “Thanks to her idiocy, Lucynell is as close to angelic innocence as a person can be [...]” (Ragen 137). As undesirable as Lucynell's innocence may be, one will be blameworthy if he betrays this type of divinity. Therefore, Shiftlet's abandonment makes him guilty because he violates the trust of a naive woman. O'Connor also tries to warn every innocent young woman that she is vulnerable and can be taken advantage of by a deceptive man. For every woman, the reality remains that she may never achieve the feat of being such a woman out of a fairy tale. Only a handful of fictional women have been able to claim the victory of being a charismatic woman that men can't resist. Even if it doesn't live up to Lucynell's misfortune, every woman has flaws that prevent her from portraying the image of the goddess-like beauty. Since such a Venus does not really exist, O'Connor creates the extreme opposite of an idol to foil the situation. The mother in a story can be classified into two categories: the evil stepmother or the nurturing mother. In this case, Mrs. Crater exemplifies the mother who does not fit into either category; she is neither neglectful nor encouraging. Lucynell Crater is the only character in this tale who has the consciousness to choose between good and evil, innocence or ambition. The mother has only one goal in mind: to marry her daughter to any man who wants to have her. As Mr. Tom L. Shiftlet arrives at the rugged farm, Mrs. Crater sees the only opportunity to marry off her daughter. She tries to start a relationship between the two as soon as she finds onethe opportunity. Mrs. Crater insinuates to Shiftlet her desire to have him with her daughter by saying, "'Teach him to say sugarpie,' she says. Mr. Shiftlet knew what she had in mind” (F. O’Connor 625). Lucynell doesn't miss any opportunity to have her daughter with this man. Although Shiftlet and Lucynell are quite perceptive, Lucynell ignores the fact that there are some questionable characteristics in this future son-in-law. Mrs. Crater's choice to choose the wrong one over the right one proves that the right answer is not always the final answer. Would a caring mother ignore the fact that her only daughter is marrying a cheater? The prospector only agrees to take the girl when bribes are added to the deal. As Shiftlet and the mother again discuss marriage proposals, Mrs. Crater "carefully throws the bait." 'You can have it painted by Saturday. I’ll pay for the painting’” (F. O’Connor 626). The mother's numerous attempts to marry her daughter off to someone who will only enter the relationship if a piece of rusty metal is repainted illustrates her lack of concern. Perhaps at his age, his only ambition in life is to see his daughter get married. Yet why would a decent mother ignore the obvious lack of sincerity in a man to marry her innocent and naive child? Mrs. Crater still thinks that she must convince Shiftlet of his right choice to marry her daughter. On returning home after the announced wedding, the mother said: “'Isn't Lucynell pretty? It looks like a doll.' [...] 'You have a price!'" (F. O'Connor 626). Her vain attempts to keep her daughter and Shiftlet happy cease as she lets Lucynell go on her "honeymoon". Although Lucynell Crater has followed her own ambition and seen her daughter yoked, her only daughter will suffer from her mother's blind aspirations. Miss Crater exemplifies O'Connor's character type who are "[...] vain and selfish creatures. , blind to themselves, dead to others, and in desperate need of grace” (Milder 419) Yet, as her daughter’s possible grace stands before her eyes, she remains blinded by ambition. Mrs. Crater's following her own desires makes her useless to others. Many mothers tell their daughters, "I only want you to be happy." Through her actions, Lucynell shows that she never wants that for her daughter. connecting with a misguided and two-faced man By first fulfilling her own goals, the mother shows that she would rather make herself happy than wish the same for her daughter. Mrs. Crater is “[…] involved in sin like the rest of humanity” (Ragen 137). Although this sin is not comparable to the carnal sins that humanity commits, it sins through pride, greed, and symbolic blindness. Mrs. Crater As the handsome hero rescues the beautiful girl and takes her into his arms, he trips on a fallen branch and drops the heroine in a mud puddle. The clumsy man spoiled the ending of the fairy tale. In Flannery O'Connor's twisted tale, Tom L. Shiftlet ruins the fairy tale in ways more detrimental than a simple act of clumsiness. If we imagine the main male character in a fairy tale, we would see a well-built man, charismatic and intelligent, with a smile that would melt the heart of any damsel in distress. We would less likely think of an angular hero with a "[...] smile [that] stretches like a tired snake waking up by a fire" (F. O'Connor 626). This very description would immediately suggest a shady and evil character, not quite the typical hero. From the beginning, Shiftlet tries to portray a Christ-like character. His actions such as raising his arms to make a twisted cross and bringing to life a car that hasn't been driven in fifteen years makeallusion to major actions during the ministry of Christ. O'Connor specifically writes such suggestive terms so that one can clearly see that Tom L. Shiftlet's is so far-fetched of the typical hero that his dirty flaws lie well beneath the devious surface. Even though Shiftlet tries to gain the temporary trust of others, Shiftlet, like other O'Connor "villains" [...] are versions of the pseudo-Christ as a trickster, easily betraying those who put their faith in them. [...]" (Asals 133) Within this thin, angular and one-armed man hides a manipulative and scheming character, a man without moral integrity. He knows for himself that he has no moral conviction. He tries to convince Mrs. Crater and himself that he is doing this by saying that he has "[...] 'moral intelligence!' and his face came out of the darkness in a ray of door light and he looked at her as if he himself were amazed by this impossible truth” (F. O’Connor 624). the righteous desires of his honest heart, without the knowledge of good and evil, how can a man make good decisions? This fact foreshadows that any action coming from Shiftlet will be based on greed, lust and desires. carnal one states, "Shiftlet is only trying to save his own life---while he is given the chance to at least improve Lucynell's or Mrs. Crater's" (Ragen 138). to playHe refuses Christ-like acts of service because of his selfish habits What brings Shiftlet to the farm is the thing he craves most: a car.2E The mother, not having one. intending to use the car again, uses it as bait to lure Shiftlet into a relationship with his "exquisite" daughter. Shiftlet is happy with the deal but is not honoring the car custody arrangements because he believes the marriage was "'[...] nothing but paperwork and blood tests. [. ..] It didn't satisfy me at all'" (F. O'Connor 626). Shiftlet's only satisfaction comes when he deceives and insults an innocent woman, steals a car, and boasts of a pitiful act of helping a hitchhiker. Ultimately, all that matters to this “hero” are his own desires and pleasures. Only the "slime of the earth" could create such discontent in the lives of others to satisfy his own desires, certainly not a hero. Shiftlet illustrates O'Connor's typical villainous characters. Shiftlet is a perfect projection of a hypocritical and evil man who has an image of Christ and man. Due to O'Connor's modern consciousness, she finds it interesting to link Christ and the devil into one individual and experience the result. Although Shiftlet is a lesser villain compared to O'Connor's other characters, she makes a clear point that one cannot place one's trust in the hands of a shady character without facing devastating consequences. Any fairy tale will have slight conflicts and challenges to overcome. the story is interesting, but fortunately most have a happy ending. In any typical story, two characters find love and spread happiness around them. In O'Connor's twisted version, the farm does not present a charming setting where love would surely transpire. The rustic farmhouse shows a slight glimmer of hope due to the view of the mountainous horizon, the only beauty of the setting. Even Shiftlet comments on the beauty of the scene saying: "[...]a man had to run away to the country to see the whole world and he wished he lived in a desolate place like this where he would see the sun disappear. every evening as God commanded him to do” (F. O’Connor 624). The landscape is perhaps the only source of divine light shown.