Sociological Issues Display in Literary Works

Words: 1111 Pages: 3

Aravind, Kola, et al. “Nihilism in Flannery O’Connor’s ‘Good Country People.’” Journal of Critical Reviews, vol. 7, no. 4, 2020, pp. 646-647.

This scholarly article draws attention to the topic of nihilism in O’Connor’s “Good Country People.” Aravind et al. have created a paper that is suitable for a broad audience that is interested in O’Connor’s literary works. According to the authors, O’Connor shows that a strained relationship between the mother and the daughter implies adverse consequences. In this case, Hulga neglects her mother’s care and values, which allows Manley to deceive her.

Funk, Hannah. “Female Agency: Standing Upon the Artificial Leg of Independence in Flannery O’Connor’s ‘Good Country People.’” Making Literature Conference, 2019, pp. 1-10.

Funk draws attention to the concept of a female agency and how it is reflected in O’Connor’s “Good Country People.” This scholarly article is popular in the modern world because it addresses essential feminist issues. According to Funk, O’Connor depicts Hulga as a fragile character, who cannot avoid problems and becomes deceived by Manley Pointer. Funk explains that Hulga has this characteristic feature because of worsened family dynamics with her mother, Mrs. Hopewell.

Hani, Mohamad. “Analysis of Social Problem in ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find’ by Flannery O’Connor.” English Community Journal, vol. 3, no. 1, 2019, pp. 342-349.

The scholarly article analyzes the social problems that are addressed in O’Connor’s “A Good Man Is Hard to Find.” In addition to ordinary readers, this scientific work will be useful for sociologists since Hani tries to reveal the social nature of the short story under analysis. According to Hani, O’Connor shows that family disorganization is an adverse life phenomenon that can lead to dangerous consequences. In this literary work, family dynamics is a prerequisite of an upcoming tragedy.

Morrell, Todd. “Commentary on Selections from ‘Good Country People.’” Academic Medicine, vol. 91, no. 3, 2016, p. 353.

Morrell presents a detailed description and analysis of O’Connor’s “Good Country People.” This scholarly article is useful for readers to enhance their understanding of the given short story. According to Morrell, Joy suffers from a strained family relationship with her mother, Mrs. Hopewell. The fact that Mrs. Hopewell cannot treat her 32-year-old daughter as an adult makes the latter subject to external threats. Thus, the article shows that a family relationship has a significant impact on people’s lives.

O’Connor, Flannery. A Good Man Is Hard to Find. Faber & Faber, 2016.

This book is a collection of short stories by Flannery O’Connor, a famous American novelist who covered the topics of ethics and morality and obtained a national award for her work. “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is one of the most famous pieces of literature by Flannery O’Connor. The audience of various genders and ages can like the given story since it addresses many essential themes, including good and evil, social classes, and religion. Furthermore, O’Connor depicts that family dynamics can significantly influence people’s lives. “Good Country People” also demonstrates that the disagreement between the mother and the daughter can result in adverse consequences.

Shafiq, Jinan Abdulla. “Dysfunctional Families: A Study in Flanner O’Connor’s ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find’ and ‘Good Country People.’” Journal of the Faculty of Basic Education, vol. 23, no. 97, 2017, pp. 11-20.

This scholarly article considers a role that the topic of dysfunctional families occupies in O’Connor’s short stories, including “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” and “Good Country People.” This article is a useful information source for numerous readers to understand the real meaning of O’Connor’s literary works. Shafiq explains that the family in “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is dysfunctional because of the characters’ indifference to one another. This phenomenon is central in the story since it makes the family members disrespect the grandmother, which leads them to The Misfit. As for “Good Country People,” Shafiq mentions that a broken connection between Hulga and her mother, Mrs. Hopewell, exposes the daughter to a threat.

Thuan, Le Thi Bich. “Character Analysis Through Politeness in ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find’ by Flannery O’Connor.” International Journal of Applied Linguistics & English Literature, vol. 6, no. 4, 2017, pp. 218-226.

This article presents the analysis of the grandmother’s character because she bears a few exciting features. Thuan admits that his work offers useful information for pragmatics and literature specialists. Furthermore, the article explains that O’Conner draws significant attention to family dynamics in her short story. The novelist depicts that family relations are poor because the grandmother’s relatives do not talk to her; they only listen. Thaun states that this situation is a sign that there is a generation gap between the characters.

Windriani, Dian. “Purifying the 1920s Southern American Society: The Grotesque in Flannery O’Connor’s ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find.’” Indonesian Journal of English Language Studies, vol. 4, no. 1, 2018, pp. 50-54.

This scholarly article interprets O’Connor’s short story as an appeal to society to follow religious beliefs to protect itself from possible dangers. Windriani explains that O’Connor focuses on violence and horror that are the consequences of people’s vanity and isolation. Thus, Windriani demonstrates that strained family dynamics that are found among the short story’s characters is a source of possible problems for the whole society in the future.

Yunfei, Deng. “Flannery O’Connor’s Original Sin and Redemption: A Close Reading of ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find.’” International Journal of Liberal Arts and Social Science, vol. 4, no. 1, 2016, pp. 107-111.

Yunfei considers the topics of sin and salvation in the short story by O’Connor. The scholar offers a close reading of O’Connor’s literary work to present a deep understanding of its meaning. Even though the article’s title focuses on sin and redemption, Yunfei does its best to reveal many other topics. Thus, he shows that decreased family dynamics is the primary source of the final tragedy. The scientist explains that family dynamics are underdeveloped because the characters do not respect one another wants.

Zhao, Yang. “The Absurd Theme in ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find.’” The 3^rd International Conference on Economy, Management, and Education Technology, 29-30 July 2017, Huhhot, China.

The article presents an analysis of “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” from the point of view of absurdity that is present in the story. The author, a Chinese scholar, summarizes this piece of literature and describes the absurdity that is present in the grandmother’s actions. This scientific work is useful for many readers who want to understand the story’s meaning better. In addition to that, Zhao reveals the characters’ decreased family dynamics that is one of the main reasons for the family to face a tragedy.

Works Cited

Aravind, Kola, et al. “Nihilism in Flannery O’Connor’s ‘Good Country People.’” Journal of Critical Reviews, vol. 7, no. 4, 2020, pp. 646-647.

Funk, Hannah. “Female Agency: Standing Upon the Artificial Leg of Independence in Flannery O’Connor’s ‘Good Country People’.” Making Literature Conference, 2019, pp. 1-10.

Hani, Mohamad. “Analysis of Social Problem in ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find’ by Flannery O’Connor.” English Community Journal, vol. 3, no. 1, 2019, pp. 342-349.

Morrell, Todd. “Commentary on Selections from ‘Good Country People.’” Academic Medicine, vol. 91, no. 3, 2016, p. 353.

O’Connor, Flannery. A Good Man Is Hard to Find. Faber & Faber, 2016.

Zhao, Yang. “The Absurd Theme in ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find.’” The 3^rd International Conference on Economy, Management, and Education Technology, 2017, Huhhot, China.