rote she stated: "You have found Christ when you are concerned with other people's suffering and not your own." In this quotation we can see the moral message O'Connor was attempting to convey in her stories, and through further analysis of the work this

In the first story, A Good Man is Hard to Find, O'Connor's moral message is clearly presented. The grandmother protagonist in the story is very self-serving. She demands constant attention (although rarely getting it) and stubborn in the fact that her wishes must be carried out. She only wants to go to Tennessee to see old connections (O'Connor, pg. 1). The grandmother cannot move away from past and is at the same time confused by accuracy of past events.

In Good Country People Hulga, at first, separates herself from her mother. Hulga believes that because of her education she is smarter and more perceptive of people and life. Hulga's image of herself as mentally superior over these "good country people" is also carried over to her thoughts on Pointer and her plans to seduce him. When Hulga is fooled all feelings of superiority are gone; she is now no better than her perceived ignorant mother. Despite her higher education Hulga was tricked, and has lead to a different perception of good country/Christian people (O'Connor, pg. 193). Now that Hulga realizes that she is not any better than her mother she may begin to see that her own suffering and beliefs are not as important and that sympathizing with and understanding her mother may be more important.

elf-centered behavior was wrong. By returning her to the state of a child the Misfit has given her a sort of rebirth and a new fresh outlook on life. In death the grandmother has learned these things and has achieved salvation through the barrel of the Misfit's gun.

On the trip a road stop seems very suggestive of a hellish place: barbecue fires, Red Sammy, etc (O'Connor, pg. 6). The grandmother's lack of character judging is pointed out in this scene. She believes that Red Sammy is a good man because he relates to her old fashioned values (she thinks). Sammy is surprised at this and exclaims, "Yes'm, I suppose so," his unsureness makes the reader question Sammy's character. What is more telling is what the waitress says while bringing the food: "It isn't a soul in this green world of God's that you can trust... I don't count nobody out on that, not nobody (O'Connor, pg. 8)." While speaking this last line the waitress looks directly at Sammy, making him angry/uncomfortable. If Sammy is not a good man is he evil? Could he represent Satan, Red Sammy is a fitting parallel name. Sammy then states that "a good man is hard to find." Could this be forewarning to the grandmother's confused values of what is right or wrong (good or bad)?

Our Lord (O'Connor, pg. 246)." Why does Mrs. McIntyre feel so guilty? Has this new way of thinking also altered her perception? After Mr. Guziac's death Mrs. McIntyre now perceives herself as a displaced person. In a quotation near the end of the story we can see how: "She felt she was in some foreign country where the people who bent over the body were natives, and she watched like a stranger while the dead man was carried away in the ambulance." This quote seems to illustrate that Mrs. McIntyre has finally sympathized with the displaced people, now possibly she will think more of others before herself. This realization has come to late for Mrs. McIntyre, there is nothing she can do for Mr. Guziac, who has died for her sins. The numbness that develops in Mrs. McIntyre's legs and hands may partly be related to her guilt for not helping the displaced people.

When Mr. Head and Nelson separate Nelson realizes that he needs Mr. Head very much, becoming very scared when he thinks he is alone in the strange city. Mr. Head's denial of Nelson in the street can be compare to biblical denials of faith. Even though Nelson needs Mr. Head he to has refused to make that fact known, showing his stubborn nature. When the two come across the statue differences and contempt are washed away. O'Connor

Some common words found in the essay are:
Misfit O'Connor, Red Sammy, Secondly Pointer's, Nelson Head, Flannery O'Connor's, Misfit Jesus, McIntyre Guziac, People Hulga, Artificial Nigger, Europe McIntyre, o'connor pg, displaced person, country people, moral message, red sammy, grotesque elements, notes november, o'connor's moral, notes november 8, o'connor's stories, nelson doesn't, o'connor's moral message,
Approximate Word count = 2582
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)