Background Information
Plot/Character
Literary Devices
Humor
Misc.
100
Where is Flannery O'Connor from?
Georgia
100
What is the Freemans’ relationship to Mrs. Hopewell?
Mr. Freeman is a farmer for Mrs. Hopewell.
100
What does Joy Hulga’s leg symbolize and how is it symbolic that Manly steals it?
Her leg symbolizes pride--the wooden part of her soul--and Manly stealing her leg symbolizes her pride being taken away.
100
How does O’Connor add humor through Mrs. Hopewell’s relationship to her daughter?
Mrs. Hopewell and Joy-Hulga are opposites: Mrs. Hopewell is overly optimistic and cheerful to the point of being a cliche and Joy-Hulga is overly pessimistic and rude to the point of being a cliche.
100
“She had a vision of the name working like the ugly sweating Vulcan who stayed in the furnace and to whom, presumably, the goddess had to come when called...One of her greatest triumphs was that her mother than not been able to turn her dust into Joy, but the greater one was that she had been able to turn it herself into Hulga.” (4) Identify and explain the literary device in this quotation.
Simile: Joy-Hulga chose her name to defy her mother and envisions her name 
“working hard” for her each day to gain power over her mother. Joy-Hulga’s name choice reveals her pride.
200
What was O’Connor’s religion?
Catholic
200
How did Joy-Hulga lose her leg?
shot off in a hunting accident
200
Identify irony in the Bible salesman’s interaction with Mrs. Hopewell.
Mrs. Hopewell thinks he is a "good" person even though he actually has evil intentions.
200
Black Humor: What else has Manly Pointer stolen?
glass eye
200
Is Mrs. Hopewell’s name ironic or appropriate? Explain your answer.
It is appropriate because she is always hopeful. It is ironic because she maintains hope blindly, when it is clear that her daughter’s personality is not what she hopes for.
300
What disease did O'Connor die from?
lupus
300
Why isn't the bible salesman worried about Joy finding him?
Manly Pointer isn't his real name, and he changes his name frequently.
300
Identify irony in the Bible salesman’s interaction with Joy Hulga.
Joy-Hulga repeatedly thinks of Manly as an innocent child when in reality he is a calculating man, trying to steal her leg. She also envisions running away with him, each night allowing him to take off her leg, when in reality, he takes off her leg and runs away.
300
“Besides the neutral expression that she wore when she was alone, Mrs. Freeman had two others, forward and reverse.” What is Mrs. Freeman’s “forward expression” compared to? a. the advancement of a truck b. the onslaught of soldiers c. the hunt of a lion
a
300
What is the significance of the title, “Good Country People”?
Mrs. Hopewell ironically thinks that Manly Pointer is “good country people,” when in reality, he steals her daughter’s leg. She also condescendingly calls the Freemans “good country people,” revealing her class prejudice.
400
What is the basic outline of O'Connor's stories? How does "Good Country people" fit into this outline?
1. a character is prideful, stubborn, and oblivious to grace 2. God pursues the character and tries to shock him/her into receiving grace. Joy-Hulga is prideful, and Manly shocks her by stealing her leg.
400
How old is Joy-Hulga?
32
400
What does Joy Hulga’s illness symbolize?
her heart condition symbolizes her hardness of heart
400
What does Mrs. Freeman report to Mrs. Hopewell every day?
How many times her daughter has vomited.
400
According to the background information, what is the term that describes when O'Connor's characters are shocked?
moment of grace
500
Why does O'Connor write stories with extreme situations? (3 reasons/points)
1. Her audience believes God is dead. 2. Her audience has heard the Christian religion preached so many times that the sacraments and grace have lost their impact. 3. Writing about grace in a shocking, unconventional way will reach her audience.
500
Name 3 examples of Joy-Hulga’s pride.
name choice, intelligence, lack of faith
500
How is the very end of the story ironic?
Mrs. Hopewell claims that Manly is simple, when in reality he is not who he has claimed to be at all. Mrs. Freeman ends by saying she could never be that simple, when in reality she has also misinterpreted Manly’s intentions.
500
What joke does Manly tell Joy-Hulga?
“Have you ever eaten chicken that was 2 days old?” “It must have been mighty small!”
500
What are the names of Mrs. Freeman’s daughters?
Glynese and Carramae
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