"Parker's Back"

Out of the three stories we had to read by O'Connor, "Parker's Back" seems to be the odd ball out. The other two stories, "Revealtion" and "A Good Man is Hard to Find" each reveal the physical prejudices people can have against other people who are different from them. However, the characters of "Parker's Back" do not focus on this. The characters focus more on religion, beliefs, and personality. Also, the short story does not have a character that directly represents O'Connor. Her mother is represented by the nagging wife who is extremely religious. O'Connor slightly represents herself in Parker, who is trying to please his wife, but never quite makes it to the degree he wanted to.

"Revelation"...

Flannery O'Connor's short stories show how much the world has changed in the last 50 years or so. The main character in her piece of literature, "Revelation," is a perfect example of this. The main character, a farmer's wife, is a nasty piece of work. As the story progressed the less I liked her. Her comments were obnoxious and completely prejudice against anybody but herself and anyone else like her. It hit me after reading the story, however, that this was written decades ago when it was more acceptable to talk this way. If the wife were living in present times, she never would have made it out of her doctor's office alive before being attacked by all the patients, instead of one girl.

Peer Review

When sitting in class, there were a few people who said they did not enjoy peer editing. I understand it can sometimes be a bit embarrassing to show someone a crappy paper you may have hastily written the night before, but peer editing is one of the most helpful tools when writing. I get sick of looking at my papers and can't catch half of my own mistakes by the time I'm done writing them. Even if I go back at a later time, I still can't properly edit my papers. If something is unclear to other people reading it, it will help me reword sentences to make my point more obvious. Peer editing can do no wrong to your papers, unless the person editing your work doesn't know what they're doing.

O'Connor and the South

Reading Flannery O’Connor’s writing makes it apparent she comes from the southern parts of the United States. The lifestyle found in the old south has weaved its way through her short stories: “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” “Revelation,” and “Parker’s Back.” To start off with, the setting of her stories do no take place in a state above Tennessee. Each story radiates the feeling of being in the country. In “Parker’s Back” and “Revelation,” the main characters work on a farm while in “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” the characters mainly have to drive through Georgia to get to Florida.
It is not only the settings of the stories that gives away O’Connor is from the south. Above anything else, it is her characters that let the audience know where her heritage lies. All of her characters would seem out of place if you were to put them somewhere like California or Massachusetts. “A Good Man is Hard to Find” consists of a family with the grumpy grandmother who lives with her son. The grandmother is always reminiscing about the good old days in Tennessee. “Revelation” shows the typical prejudices a person could have against the “types” of people who live in the southern regions. The wife in the story did nothing but thank the Lord she was who she was and not a piece of white trash or a disgraced black woman. “Parker’s Back” consists of a black man trying to find his way in the world. He is continuously searching when he begins courting a girl. He courts her by bringing a basket of fruit from the farm he works. He brings her things such as peaches, a fruit that symbolizes the south.

Flannery O'Connor Questions

"A Good Man is Hard To Find"
1.O'Connor begins to foreshadow at the very start of her story when the grandmother begins to talk about the "misfit" who escaped from jail. As the story progresses, she continues to talk about how much better it would be to visit Tennessee than go to Florida, hinting the readers something will happen if the family doesn't listen to the grandmother. Her conversation with the restaurant workers only further proves something will happen to the family by reminding the reader the "misfit" is still out of jail.

2. The grandmother always seems to be the typical, nagging older member of a family. She lives to reminisce about her past. As the story moves along, she seems to turn into a more caring, grandmother who is looking over everyone, to almost childlike at the end, not wanting to get in trouble with her son for causing the accident.

3.At the end, she realizes the man is going to kills her and claims to be his mother. She reaches out to his should trying to console him, but he kills her. She thought that maybe he would have mercy oh his own mom.

4. During the conversation, the reader learns the identity of the people and what their intentions are. The "misfit" has a very dim view of the world. He claims to be a bad man who doesn't belong anywhere. He tried to have a family, and couldn't even succeed at that.

6. The echo Mrs. Turpin hears is the answer to her worries. The girl at the doctor's office severely hurt her feelings. This made Mrs. Turpin self conscious and she wanted to know if she is as low down as the girl thought her to be.

7. She learned that people are people. You can't classify a person based on what the appear to be. You can't judge somebody based on the color of their skin or the clothes they wear.

"Parker's Back"
5.Parker believes there is nothing out in the world for him. Staring out into nothing is exactly what there could possibly be there- nothing. It shows he thinks of himself as alone with nowhere to go.

6. Parker wants to do something to impress his wife, only for her to beat him out of the house with a broom.

7. This shows Parker is very aware of himself and his actions. He knows he acted insane the night before and had every intention of not acting the same way the following day.

8. His quote shows he is by no means a religious man. If a man does not deserve his own sympathy, then nobody could save him. This goes to show that he thinks he doesn't deserve any of his own sympathy and can't be saved.

9. Sara Ruth wants the name written on his papers showing he was saved. Whispering his name through the key hole symbolizes him unlocking the door for her to open it. When he says his name, it frees him of his past ghosts because he is admitting to who he is.

If I had the power to changer something...

If I had the power to change something, I would change the amount of time in a day. It always seems as if there is never enough time to accomplish what needs to be accomplished in a day comprised of 24 hours. A day can be carefully and meticulously timed out so things can get done, but it always seems to be impossible. 36 hours would be a good amount. If there were 36 hours in a day then you would be able to get things done AND still have enough sleep that night. As a college student, not enough sleep seems to be the way of life, even on the weekends when there's no class to attend.

" A Good Man Is Hard To Find"

"A Good Man is Hard To Find" intrigued me. It caught my attention because at the beginning, it was a story that could be found in multiple households at almost any place in the United States. Even though the story seemed ordinary, it still caught my attention. Although the grandmother seemed liked nothing more than a nuisance, I felt great pity for her. She lived with her son and his family, who paid no attention to her. However, from the son's viewpoint, I can understand why he treats her the way he does, but it doesn't make him right. She was trying to tell him she wanted to see somewhere different on their vacation, but he wouldn't have it. If he had only listened to her, they never would have been killed. The grandmother was constantly ignored, and a grandparent shouldn't be treated that way, no matter was annoying they could be.

Fall Time!

In my opinion, fall has got to be the most exciting of the four seasons. Never at any other point of the year do I feel more anticipation than when the weather begins to cool down and the days become shorter. The leaves change into an incredible array of colors that can be stared at for an eternity. The cold weather also means the holiday seasons are just around the corner! Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are within reach, after waiting for them all year. The holiday seasons means lots of family and big meals you gain a million pounds from and days off school!

One Day I Dreamed...

I was about 11 years old the last time I had a nightmare that made me cry. I was enjoying my comfortable bed full of way too many pillows when I began to dream about my crazed fifth grade science teacher. I was on a lake with a dock when her perfectly manicured finger nails and heavy made-up face began to chase me. It was not bad enough my old science teacher was chasing me, but she had to have pink, squirming jellyfish in her hands. They were literally squirting grape jelly out of their tentacles and were desperately trying to get me. In the end I managed to swim away, because the jellyfish didn't have the ability to swim. For the next few weeks, my old science teacher was my villain.

I Wish Someone Told me...

I wish someone told me that high school really was not the end of the world. You're so wrapped up in what is going on in that particular moment of your life, you don't realize that what's going on doesn't really have that much importance. A bad hair day, a breakup, or an "F" on a small quiz really wasn't going to be that big of a deal. I know I was so wrapped up in the small things of my life that those things now seem to not even matter. As a college student now, I am at least aware that I have not quite encountered what things the world holds. I do know, however, that bad frizz is not quite it.

Blurbage

How I would summarize my life in a blurb.... if I were a villain.

Dashing through dark alleys, sprinting from screeching car alarms, it is imperative to keep a lookout for the super-villain, Natasha. A big, mean, bully-like girl at an intimidating five feet, zero inches tall, and a massive 120 pounds! Her life is devoted to deceit and treachery. She may look innocent and friendly, but she is made of nothing but a stone cold heart. Never let her trick you with her fake smile. She's only trying to fool you! With a blink of an eye she will steal everything you own, even your favorite pair of Christmas boxers! Hold on to your prized, and not-so-prized possessions. Before you know it, they may all be gone.

Villains

In class, we talked about what makes a hero and how heroes are respected figures. Well, what about villains? What characteristics makes a person be viewed as a villain? If a person is considered a villain, is it possible for them to be respected, as well?

Like a hero, I believe a villain is judged by his intentions. Whether the person's intentions are to purely cause harm to others or it is a selfish intention and the result is harming people, would be what I would consider a not so upstanding character. Although this may sound horrible, I also believe a villain can be respected. For example, take Adolf Hitler into consideration. He was responsible for millions of deaths, but what he did was unimaginable. He wrote a book and told the world his plans and then set out to do it, almost successfully. He was able to convince thousands of people to follow him and his preposterous cause. It may be a horrible act, but it is an act that almost no other person would be able to accomplish.

"A Streetcar Named Desire"

Tennessee William's play, "A Streetcar Named Desire," was well reproduced by the Hattiloo Theater. Historically a black theater, I forgot the show was even meant to be played by a caucasian cast. Like "Cigarette Girl," I was not excited to see this play. Atleast this time I had the luxury of dragging my boyfriend along with me so I was not by myself. Even he ended up enjoying it. The cast delievered a good performance and I would recommend it to anybody to go see it. The main character, Blanch, did a terrific job of carrying the story along. The only negative thing I can say about the show was that it was slightly confusing at times. Certain things were implied, however, those implied moments were not always easy to understand.