Essay, Research Paper
Through out the stories, ?Everything that Rises Must Converge? and ?Revelation?
Flannery O?Connor presents a view of human judgment on others as the theme.
These two excellent works of literature must be evaluated carefully so that they
can be compared and contrasted. The two stories provide ground for a solid
comparison. Both stories carefully executed characterizations, rising actions
that provide complication and suspense, similar settings, and related points of
view.
Both stories carefully executed characterizations. In ?Everything that
Rises Must Converge?, O?Connor displays the relationship between Julian, a
young man who has recently graduated from college, and his mother. Julian is a
character who has a fair understanding of the environment he lives in, because
of this he finds difficult to deal with his mother and her views of the world.
Racism is the main point of the conflict between these two characters. The plot
of the story revolves around a bus trip that Julian and his mother take. Through
out the bus trip conflicts with no solutions are presented. Towards the end we
view Julian and his mother as static characters, because they do not reveal sign
of improvement on their problems. In the other hand, in ?Revelation?, O?Connor
shows how an ugly, nasty young woman is the key character through which the
truth is reveal to Mrs. Turpin. The truth being the way Mrs. Turpin sees herself
and other people. The conflicts Mrs. Turpin faces in the story refined her way
of thinking about the rest of the world. This refinement makes her a dynamic
character. O?Connor has characterized both stories in a way that enhance the
interest of the reader.
O?Connor pack her stories full with action and suspense. In ?Everything
that Rises Must Converge?, O?Connor introduces the mother and son conflict
at the beginning of the story; the conflict is the argument over a hat that
Julian?s mother bought. This hat is a symbol of the conflict that exists
between the two. On a bus ride to the local YMCA more problems are presented
that build up the suspense in the story. Looking for an excuse to get his mother
mad, Julian looks for an African American to seat next to knowing how
uncomfortable his mother will feel. After Julian makes his mother uncomfortable,
a black woman walks into the bus with a black child. When the black woman
arrives at her stop Julian?s mother offer the little black boy a nickel.
Angered by the shallow gesture, the black woman shouts at Julian?s mother and
strikes her with her purse Knocking her out. Also, ?Revelation? is full of
rising action. O?Connor shows the conflict in the story right from the start.
Mrs. Turpin i
conflict is worse than the problems in ?Everything that Rises Must Converge?,
because she is judging people she dose not know. She seems to compare people to
herself or things she would do. The ugly girl is so upset by Mrs. Turpin
ignorant remarks that she throws her schoolbook at her. Mrs. Turpin tries to
understand why the girl has done such a thing to her. In the end she realizes
that she was wrong about everything and that she should change her ways. The
reader again was left with a feeling of satisfaction, because of the constant
suspense.
The setting of ?Everything that Rises Must Converge? and ?Revelation?
are very similar. The setting of the short story ?Everything that Rises Must
Converge? is the integrated South. The conflicts are unfolded during a ride on
a bus. The bus is shaped as a rectangle with seats on the surrounding for the
customers. Some of these seats face each other. This stage of eye contact can
cause discussions. Similarly, in ?Revelation? the setting is a doctor?s
waiting room. Like the bus, the waiting room is very small with chairs for the
patients. The first judgment Mrs. Turpin makes is about the young boy who did
not give her space to seat. On this example we can see that the setting
contribute to an argument. The setting also gives the reader an excellent
imagination so that they are able picture the story as they read it.
?Everything that Rises Must Converge? and ?Revelation are presented in
the same point of view. Both stories are third person narrative. This type of
narration does not give us a story told by a character. Therefore, an unbiased
story may be told and the reader can establish his own position. Even though the
narration is the same, the points of view on racism are different. In ?Everything
that Rises Must Converge? O?Connor Julian?s mother is racist. The reason
for this is that she has lived all her life in a world of slavery. Now she has
to go through a transition from a world of slavery to a modern life with freedom
and equality for everyone. In ?Revelation? O?Connor illustrates a woman
who is racist toward people unlike her. The different points of view help the
reader become more familiar with the differences and similarities of the
stories.
In conclusion, ?Everything that Rises Must Converge? and ?Revelation?
by Flannery O?Connor are both work of literature that attack an issue in
different forms. The stories present carefully executed characterizations,
rising actions that provide complication and suspense, similar settings, and
related points of view. The evaluation of each work has made it possible for a
solid comparison.