'Good Country People: the Twin Dragons of Image and Language Essay\r'

'â€Å"Good land hatful”: The Twin Dragons of Image and Language â€Å"Good Country People” by Flannery O’Connor tells the story of a thirty-two year old handicapped woman originally named Joy still afterwards Hulga with a PhD in philosophical system. Towards the end of the story, the supposedly intelligent and slick Hulga is seduced by a supposedly simple, ingenuous, and innocent-looking Bible salesman by the name of Manley cursor. As in Revelations, it is possible to soak up the twin dragons of take in and speech communication working unneurotic to work in this story.\r\nSpecifically, the twin dragons as characterized victimization chat spoken by Hulga and Manley genuinelyise a sense of individualism, maturity, and control of individual(prenominal) fate ; however, solely Manley possesses these qualities, plot Hulga is under the illusion that she does. Also, when use by the creator, the twin dragons’ message to the reader is one of val et collectiveness, vulnerability, and simplicity. As an example, both dragons ar utilized by Hulga when she uses her philosophical k at presentledge to influence the Bible salesman of her passe-partout under baging of the world.\r\nIn the barn, Manley pointer tries to drive the conference to his advantage; however, she is able to withstand his drive: â€Å"’We argon all damned’, she said, ‘ besides some of us have taken off our covers and see that at that place’s nothing to see” (674). The legless daughter chooses to use the word â€Å"damned” in an attempt to better connect to Manley Pointer’s ghostly language. In addition, Dorothy Tuck McFarland points out in her adjudicate â€Å"On ‘Good Country People’” that the blindfolded confession does not empower her, but rattling shows â€Å"Hulga’s surrender to love”(1054) which â€Å"makes her vulnerable to a revelation of her bear blindnessà ¢â‚¬Â (1054).\r\nI coincide with McFarland’s statement because the more Hulga talks somewhat herself, the more she reveals information that can be utilise against her. In addition, the young woman’s use of the blindfold image serves as a tool to disunite herself in a positive way from others who are monotonous sheep of a flock; she is different, better, all- enjoying while others are mindless. The author’s intention here is to show, by appealing to Hulga’s ethos, the negative inclination for human beings to see their qualities in a dishonest positive light and highlight them for others to be impressed.\r\nIt is now clear that when the dragons of image and language are use by the character Hulga in this case, it is to present herself as strong and unique in the eyes of Manley Pointer. In an humourous twist, O’Connor uses the dragon of language with dialogue coming from Hulga to present her entirely differently than she presents herself: naive and weak. As Pointer reveals his true self, the girl realizes that she has been tricked, her port changing drastically: â€Å"Her voice when she spoke had an close beseeching sound. ‘Aren’t you’, she murmured.\r\nAren’t you just a good demesne battalion? ”(675). All of her occasion beliefs along with her confidence are demolished in an instant, and this is highlighted by words such as â€Å"pleading” and â€Å"murmured”. Not being able to pass finished life with an orderly step-by-step procedure because of her sensual designate, Hulga’s social and love life stand on fragile foundations, and this is why her emotions overshadow her academician and philosophical intellectualism which ironically blindfolds and so pushes the girl into create a false impression of Manley Pointer’s innocence.\r\nThe author is using the dragon of language to persuade the reader of the girl’s weak nature, wistful of the tru e mental weakness of human beings in society on a larger casing; most people believe they are in control of their own destinies, but in reality, they cannot sluiceing be certain if the sun will grow tomorrow. A similar distinction can be made between the presentations of another character, Manley Pointer, by the author versus by Manley himself. When introducing him, the author uses the dragons of image and language to create a simple, innocent, and common-looking country son, traits which enable him to win Mrs.\r\nHopewell’s trust. Before dinner is ready at the skirt’s home, this apparent Bible salesman shows up at her door trying to persuade to buy bibles: â€Å" good bird, I’ll tell you the truth †not many an(prenominal) people want to buy one nowadays and besides, I know I’m real simple. I don’t know how to declare a thing but to say it. I’m just a country boy” (667). In these lines, the boy bulges as if he has to the highest degree go throughn up on selling bibles and turns himself into a submissive servant in order to give Mrs. Hopewell a sense of control over him and their discussion.\r\nThe salesman appeals to ethos which makes the lady lower her guard; however, he is still not successful until he plays with her emotions when he mentions his heart condition: â€Å"I have this heart condition. ” (668). This approach is trenchant because â€Å"he and Joy had the alike condition! ”(668); because of this, Mrs. Hopewell’s trust is won and he is given a free meal alongside Hulga. Dorothy Tuck McFarland argues that the image of naivety the county boy creates makes the girl feel â€Å"that he offers no threat to her and allows herself to respond to his open admiration” (â€Å"On ‘Good Country People’”1053).\r\nTherefore, McFarland sees the boy’s clever persona as a tool to cause Hulga to manifest her affection the same way the salesman m isleadingly manifests his. I would add nurture that his persona of innocence and simplicity does not hardly win her care but eventually wins the girl’s trust and her heart as well. disregarding of McFarland’s or others’ interpretations, the twin dragons used by the author intentionally persuade the reader that people on a societal scale are simple and submissive by turning our attention to Pointer’s aura of reliability which poses no threat and creates trust.\r\nIn a similar ironic twist of presentation as experienced via Hulga, Manley Pointer’s strength of character is unexpectedly revealed later in the story. Images and languages help reveal his true individuality and his actual beliefs, showing his individualism, manipulation of others, and control of his personal life. After the Bible salesman reveals his true colors, the girl tries to persuade him that he is just another Christian; however, Pointer shuts her up when he speaks his mind: â⠂¬Å"I expect you don’t think,”…â€Å"that I believe in that stag! I may sell Bibles but I know which end is up and I wasn’t born yesterday and I know where I’m going! (675).\r\nThe boy’s former beliefs are compared to the strong word â€Å"crap” which shows that being formally educated in philosophy is not the only way to deny perfection and religion in general. The bible salesman’s language changes from what was previously submissive and humble dialogue to what is now an empowered, angry, and insulted one, suggesting that it is wiser to be skeptical not only with ostensibly trashy people but also with the innocent and simple country ones because the last mentioned may in reality be the most proficient backstabbers.\r\nThrough is own use of the mentioned images and language, Pointer reveals that even â€Å"good country people” can be clever, unique, and surprising even when it comes to playing with the minds of the so-called intellectuals. As was done in the case of Hulga, the author puts these words into Manley’s babble out to persuade the reader that when people present themselves, they punctuate their strengths, uniqueness, and control of their own destinies. It is interesting to see that the rest between a first impression and an in-depth rating of a character has manifested itself in two shipway in this story, as we have seen.\r\nHulga is transformed by the author from a know-it-all to a confused, undistinguished dot. On the other hand, Pointer is transformed from the latter to the former. The twin dragons of image and language when used by Hulga make her look strong on the outside, but the same dragons show her true inner weakness when used by the author. Conversely, the dragons of image and language used by the author for Manley Pointer make him appear weak on the outside, but when used by Pointer himself show his true inner strength. In the end, O’Connor uses the tw in dragons to further her own dissertation of the disappointing reality of human nature.\r\n'