Project 2 Essay: Flannery O’Connor’s “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”

Good Things Happen To Bad People

Georgia born essayist Flannery O’Connor has made a legacy centered on her use of a Southern Gothic writing style. Her writing not only reflects her experiences growing up in the southern part United States but also her strong Catholic faith (O’Connor, Flannery, The Habit of Being: Letters of Flannery O’Connor). In addition, O’Connor published a lot of her work from 1946 to 1965, which was the period in which civil rights for minorities was being discussed at length throughout the United States (Protest Campaigns And Movement Success). As a result, issues including racism, classism, and religion were topics often discussed within her writing. Flannery O’Connor’s short story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” adopts several of these controversial themes within such few pages of text. The theme that is most prevalent throughout the story is the concept of God’s grace. In terms of Christian belief, the definition for grace is described as “the free and unmerited favor of God, as manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings.” (Merriam-Webster’s Learner’s Dictionary). In other words, it is the idea that all individuals are recipients of God’ s favor not dependent on whether we are worthy but rather due to his desire for us to possess it. Within Flannery O’Connor’s story, there are several very unpleasant and openly flawed individuals, some of whom become recipients of God’s grace. Her use of grotesque diction for character development, magnifies how even the most undeserving individuals, like the Misfit and grandmother, are still recipients of God’s grace.

In order to illustrate to her readers what makes the family members undeserving, O’Connor makes great use of grotesque characterization by focusing on the actions of the minor characters. Throughout the short story, the children, June Star and John Wesley show their underserving nature through their disrespectful remarks to their parents, grandmother, strangers, and the Misfit in the final scene. When the Misfit and his criminal allies stop to help the family after the crash, both children are unaware of the sinister intentions of the men and view them only as good Samaritans. Rather than exhibiting gracious attitudes, the children make nasty comments. For example, when the Misfit asks them to stay by their mother because children make him nervous, June Star scolds him and say’s “What are you telling US what to do for?” (O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find, Page. 22). The children’s’ consistently rude comments throughout the short story makes it evident to readers that they are flawed individuals.

In addition, both of their parents also reveal their undeserving nature in the final scene. Throughout the road trip, the mother is characterized as a very bland individual that rarely speaks. On the other hand, her husband is short tempered and tends to unleash his anger on his mother. From the moment the grandmother reveals that she recognizes the Misfit after the crash to the point where the first two murders take place, there is quite a lot of time that is passed. Rather than the mother and Bailey taking the initiative to try and protect their family, she just watches the terrifying scene play out while her husband takes his anger out on his mother once again and “said something to his mother that shocked even the children. [Causing] The old lady [to] began to cry” (O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find, Page. 22). O’Connor’s grotesque depiction of the parents inability to assess the situation and act in a manner that could have potentially saved their lives can be easily be seen as proof of their undeserving nature.

When dealing with the more complex characters like the grandmother and Misfit, O’Connor focuses on their dialogue in order to illustrate their outward lack of morality. Throughout the road trip, the grandmother scolds her grandchildren for their rude comments and talks at length about the importance of Southern manners. However, her own comments are filled with examples of racism, classism, and outward manipulation. Her inability to detect her own hypocrisy and ill-mannered behavior is made evident by O’Connor through her dialogue with the Misfit. Once she recognizes him, in an attempt to save the lives of her and her family by saying, “”Listen […] I know you are a good man. You don’t look a bit like you have common blood. I know you must come from nice people!” (O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find, Pages. 23). The grandmother’s mention of “common blood” is caused by her obsession with socioeconomic status. In her eyes, the elite of society are set apart from the ordinary of society. In other words, the grandmother is once again exhibiting vain ideology by trying to explain to the Misfit that he should spare their lives (avoid sin) because he is not ordinary (sinful). In addition, rather than begging him to spare the lives of his family members, the grandmother only attempts to save her own by repeatedly saying, “You wouldn’t shoot a lady, would you?” (O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find, Pages. 22).

Unlike the grandmother, the Misfit embraces his lack of morality and is self aware of his sinful behavior. Rather than trying to act as if he is a great man, the Misfit is open about his spotty past and tells the grand mother “I ain’t a good man, […] but I ain’t the worst in the world neither.” (O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find, Pages. 25). He continues on explains to her that he believes, “there is “No pleasure but meanness” (O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find, Pages. 31). The Misfit has come to terms with his sinful nature and lives in his truth.

Flannery O’Connor’s extensive use of grotesque to illustrate the immoral and underserving nature of these characters, with emphasis placed on the grandmother, makes her moment of grace all the more evident to readers. After pleading for her life, witnessing the deaths of all of her family members, and listening to the Misfits view on religion and his reason for killing, “the grand mother’s head cleared for an instant. She [then] saw the man’s face twisted close to her own as if he were going to cry and she murmured, “Why you are one of my babies. You are one of my own children!” She reached out and touched him on the shoulder”(O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find, Pages. 31-32). At this moment, the grandmother is finally able to see herself as a flawed individual and equal with the Misfit. Rather than seeing herself as morally superior as she had in the past, the grandmother is finally able to view the Misfit as a person worthy of love regardless of his socioeconomic status, religious identity, or past. Although the grandmother finally has a moment of clarity and compassion, the Misfit shoots her three times resulting in the death of the entire family.

After her death takes place, the Misfit turns to his friend and says “She would of been a good woman […] if it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life” (O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find, Page. 32). The Misfit’s statement draws attention to the grand mother’s sudden humane nature when faced with death. If she was always placed in situations where her life was in danger, she might have showed more compassion to those around her. Her death also results in a moment of grace for the Misfit. Despite his previous claims that there was no pleasure in the world but meanness, he ends the story by saying “It’s no real pleasure in life.” (O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find, Pages. 32). Although on the surface his statement seems simple, it is here that we see a major shift in his attitude. The pleasure he used to get from killing was not present when he killed the grandmother. Instead, her death was unusual in the sense that it is the first time killing made him feel remorseful instead. He too was as undeserving as the grandmother but was still a recipient of Gods grace.

Flannery O’Connor’s descriptions of her characters and extensive use of a grotesque writing style throughout “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” makes it difficult and often times impossible for her readers to be compassionate towards the characters within her story. O’Conner’s rhetorical strategy magnifies the unfavorable traits of the characters within the story. Therefore, when the grandmother and Misfit become recipients of God’s favor, the theme that grace is granted to all individuals regardless of merit becomes all the more evident.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blog Post 7: Scott

Eric Scott’s “Picking Lots” unlike most other religious memoirs does not feature a narrative in which the author is either discovering a new faith or leaving the faith in which they were raised. Instead, Scott describes a narrative which conveys how normalcy is dependent on ones perspective. He begins his short memoir by explaining how he never viewed his Pagan upbringing as being unusual when he compared himself to his peers. He describes this when he states “When I was young, of course, I had little idea of what my life looked like from the outside; [….] While I recognized that my life was strange, everybody I knew was just as strange—or stranger!—and so I still felt quite normal by comparison” (Scott, Picking lots). However, once he left his hometown to attend university and ventured out of his comfort zone, he soon discovered that he was very different when compared to his friends. Scott writes, “I realized that I was the weird one, that my friends were engaging in, at least from the standards of a Midwestern background, completely normal behavior. It just happened to be a sort of behavior to which, due to my upbringing—to my lot in life—I had never been exposed”(Scott, Picking lots). Scott’s experiences as described in his memoir exemplify how an individuals idea of normalcy is dependent on perspective.

In order to articulate this theme to his audience, Scott relies heavily on a relaxed and friendly tone which makes him relatable to his audience. For example, when Scott is describing his the big moment he realized just how strange his faith is, he says “As an example of what I mean, during that first semester I once arrived early to a friend’s apartment for a nerd party. (I only went to nerd parties then. To be honest, I still only go to nerd parties.)” (Scott, Picking lots). His use of a humorous friendly tone makes a heavy and often controversial topic such as religious identity light and inclusive for people with varying religious opinions. This allows his audience to be able to think and discuss these differences without the fear of harsh judgment.

Blog Post 6: Rivera

Tomás Rivera’s “…And the Earth Did Not Devour Him” does an excellent job of  portraying the “suffering. . . [of] the migrant worker[s]” in addition to their “strength and beauty”. This is most evident in the section of his novella titled “The Children Couldn’t Wait”. Within this section, Rivera sets the scene of adult and child farm workers completing their work on an extremely hot day without being provided with enough water from the boss. Naturally, one of children becomes dehydrated and asks for a water break to which his father responds “Come on now, come on, work. He’ll be here real soon”  (Rivera, …And the Earth Did Not Devour Him, Page 86). Despite the poor working conditions they are faced with, the father wants his son to follow the instructions of the boss and wait for more water to be brought to them . However, the little boy is unable to continue on without any water and sneaks a drink from a tank  intended to be used by cattle on the farm. This angers the boss and causes him to shoot the little boy in the face.

Rivera relies heavily on his use of child characters and imagery in this scene to exert emotional appeal from readers and in turn highlights the suffering and strength of these migrant farm workers. Children are generally viewed by society as being innocent, pure, and worthy of protection. Therefore, the decision to make a child the murder victim in this section causes readers to sympathize with the characters in his novella. Furthermore, the descriptive language used to describe their awful working conditions in addition to their willingness to push on shows the strength these workers had. For example, when describing these conditions, it states “The heat had set in with severity. […] It was so hot that the bucket of water the boss brought them was not enough” (Rivera, 86).  They’re ability to push through and follow instructions despite these unfathomable working conditions demonstrates just how strong they were.

Ginsberg & Baldwin Blog Round-Up

When looking at the blog posts from our classmates that were written about James Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blues” there was constant discussion about the theme of struggle and missed opportunity. Each blog writer in some way mentioned how the disadvantaged and drug fueled lifestyle of Sonny was due to institutional oppression. Abarrer6 alludes to this oppression in his blog when he states, “Through the text the readers come to understand not only that poverty and a lack of opportunity creates a dark atmosphere that has the potential of leading individuals down a path of drug use but also that it is very difficult to leave drugs and ultimately this life behind”. This was a common idea expressed by several classmates. However, Jchicoi makes the interesting claim that the theme is centered around the idea of brotherly love. He calls attention to the quote “it always must be heard. There isn’t any other tale to tell, it’s the only light we’ve got in all this darkness.” made by Baldwin referring to Sonny’s drug addiction. Based on this quote, he makes the claim that “Baldwin expresses the importance of brotherly love and that through writing or music even the poorest of brothers can triumph through any amount of suffering”. This was a very interesting idea that really stood out when reading all of the blog posts. When it came time to discuss significant literary or rhetorical techniques featured in the text, many  classmates discussed at great length, Baldwin’s frequent use of flashbacks. Asimmon’s mentions this in her blog post and says “Baldwin uses flash back to foreshadow this point in the brothers’ lives and also to help the reader get a better understanding of what they have gone through“. This is certainly a viewpoint that several of our classmates shared.

In addition, there were several common themes that our peers had written about in the fifth blog post about Ginsberg’s poem Howl. Throughout each blog post, our peers emphasize how unconventional the form and technique of this poem is written. What a reader would consider a “normal” poem with correct punctuation, complete sentences or rhyme, Ginsberg went in the opposite direction. Ginsberg’s goal of wanting to be different was achieved. Several peers point out that this poem helped change the literary community. Madness is a key and prevalent theme throughout Howl. Jlohr’s blog points out that “the whole piece already feels like the ramblings and thoughts of a madman” and quotes section I, “I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness…”(jlohr). This was a common piece of text quoted. Ginsberg shows his disapproval of living in a society that wants individuals to conform. In several blog posts, our peers write about how Ginsberg uses a lot of symbolism and imagery in Howl. The vivid images allow the reader to understand the destroyed society that he is writing about. The use and the form of free verse further add to the madness of the poem. This is interesting because Ginsberg believes that he is not mad but that the society around him is mad.

Blog Post 5: Flannery O’Connor

Flannery O’Connor’s short story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” adopts several controversial themes within such few pages of text. The theme that is most prevalent throughout the story is the concept of grace. In terms of Christian belief, the definition for grace is described as the free and unmerited favor of God, as manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings. In other words, it is the idea that all individuals are recipients of God’ s favor not dependent on whether we are worthy but rather due to his desire for us to possess it. Within O’Connor’s story, both the Misfit and grandmother are very unpleasant and openly flawed individuals. However, toward the latter end of the story after hearing the Misfits view on religion and coming face to face with her death, “the grandmother’s head cleared for an instant. She [then] saw the man’s face twisted close to her own as if he were going to cry and she murmured, “Why you’re one of my babies. You’re one of my own children!” She reached out and touched him on the shoulder”(O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find, Pages. 31-32). It is at this moment that the grandmother finally able to move past her flawed point of view and see the Misfit as a person worthy of love regardless of his flawed past. Nonetheless, her action causes him to shoot her three times. In the final scene of the story after her death takes place, the Misfit turns to his friend and says “She would of been a good woman […] if it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life” (O’Connor, A Good Man Is Hard to Find, Page. 32). The Misfit’s statement draws attention to the grandmothers sudden humane nature when faced with death. If she was always placed in situations where her life was in danger, she might have showed more compassion to those around her. The fact the two main characters of the story both have unfavorable traits, magnifies the theme of grace regardless of an individuals merit.  

Flannery O’Connor also makes the interesting rhetorical choice to describe the characters in her story using grotesque and often dehumanizing diction.  An example of this dehumanizing diction occurs on page 9 of the story when she writes,

“In my time,” said the grandmother, folding her thin veined fingers, “children were more respectful of their native states and their parents and everything else. People did right then. Oh look at the cute little pickaninny!” she said and pointed to a Negro child standing in the door of a shack. “Wouldn’t that make a picture, now?” she asked and they all turned and looked at the little Negro out of the back window. He waved. “He didn’t have any britches on,” June Star said. “He probably didn’t have any,” the grandmother explained. “Little niggers in the country don’t have things like we do. If I could paint, I’d paint that picture.”

 

The irony within the grandmother’s comment about her grandsons lack of respect and her own apparent racism draws attention to her hypocritical nature. O’Connor’s descriptions of her characters and grotesque writing style makes it difficult and often times impossible for her readers to be compassionate towards the characters in her story. In reference to A Good Man Is Hard to Find”, this rhetorical strategy makes it all the more evident to her audience the sinful nature and lack of morality these characters possess.

Project 1: Chapter IX of Uncle Tom’s Cabin

Uncle Tom’s Cabin is an anti slavery novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe. It is the best-selling novel of the 19th century second only to the Bible and is also credited for fueling the abolitionist movement of the 1850’s. Harriet Beecher Stowe tackles several themes within the novel including: Slavery and Race, Christianity and Christian Morality, The Beauty of Freedom, and most notably Female Influence. As a result of the time period, women were not usually viewed as providing much of an impact for social movements, public affairs, or within the political world. However, female influence is at the forefront of Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Harriet Beecher Stowe’s portrayal of female characters within the novel reveals the amount of influence women could have within the private sphere, by portraying the Senator’s submission after Eliza arrives at the Bird household.

The ideology of separate spheres was dominant from the late 18th century through the 19th century and heavily present within Chapter IX of Uncle Tom’s Cabin. This concept represented the presence of two gendered spheres in which men and women were expected to exist. The private sphere was the stereotypically feminine world of the household responsibilities and religion while the public sphere was the stereotypically masculine world of employment, politics, and public affairs. This concept implied that women were naturally moral, virtuous, spiritual and self-sacrificing creatures; while men possessed ruthless traits that made them autonomous, assertive, and self interested. With this ideology in practice, women could voice their opinions to their husbands about public sphere issues including finances and politics, but only in the private sphere. In other words, women used their influence over their husband’s in order to shape his moral decision making while outside of the home. Stowe depicts the influence women had using this ideology of separate spheres throughout the novel and most notably in Chapter IX.

At the beginning of the chapter, readers are introduced to Senator Bird and his wife Mrs. Bird. Stowe describes Mrs. Bird as “looking the very picture of delight” while she “was superintending the arrangements of the table, ever and anon mingling admonitory remarks to a number of frolicsome juveniles” (Stowe, Chapter IX). This gives the impression that Mrs. Bird is sweet woman that also commands respect from those within her household. Senator Bird and his wife soon become engaged in an argument because of his vote over a piece of legislation that forbids people from helping fugitive slaves which we now know is the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850. Mrs. Bird asks her husband if he “think[s] such a law is right and Christian? (Stowe, Chapter IX)” and to her dismay he tells her he does and voted for its ratification. Mrs. Bird is horrified by her husbands actions and tells him she’s willing to break the law “the first time [she] get[s] a chance” and continues on to tell him “I know you well enough, John. You don’t believe it’s right any more than I do; and you wouldn’t do it any sooner than I” (Stowe, Chapter IX).

As soon as Mrs. Bird finishes this statement, she is called by one of her house servants because Eliza and her son Henry have arrived at their home seeking shelter. After listening to her story and without asking her husband for permission she tells Eliza “Nobody shall hurt you here, poor woman,” and continues on to say “You are safe; don’t be afraid” (Stowe, Chapter IX). Senator Bird did not quarrel with his wife for taking charge and making the illicit decision and even became emotional once he heard Eliza’s tale of escaping from Kentucky. As a result of his wife’s promise and his sympathy for the woman, the Senator drives her and her son to a safer place to hide from fugitive slave catchers. After Mrs. Bird see’s her husband make his decision based on moral rather than fear of punishment, she tells him “Your heart is better than your head, in this case, John […] Could I ever have loved you, had I not known you better than you know yourself?” (Stowe, Chapter IX).

Mrs. Bird is a prime example of a virtuous woman who exerts her influence through her husband and some would argue through her own actions as well. Although she is not in a true position of power, she uses her household power over her husband to get the Senator to do the right thing. It becomes evident as you read the chapter that Senator Bird is a well-meaning man, however, it can be assumed that he would not have made the same decision had his wife not influenced him. Female virtue is a central theme throughout the novel whether it is in the form of maternal affection or wifely influence; all of the women in Stowe’s novel are arguably the backbone of the story. Rather than focusing on their lack of power, Mrs. Bird and several of the other female characters in Uncle Tom’s Cabin exert influence within their families and households.

Stowe directed her novel towards an audience of northern white women in order to inspire them through the experiences of the fellow northern white women within her story. As a reader, seeing how influential Mrs. Bird was over her husband just by voicing her opinions inspires them to do the same within their own households. Whether the power of these women in based on maternal affection and unconditional love like Eliza or Christian morality like Mrs. Bird, Stowe is able to illustrate the power these women poses. In turn, Stowe’s female audience would be able to see themselves within one of the female characters and in turn be inspired to exert their own influence and make a positive impact on the morale of their husbands and/or loved ones.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blog Post 4: Zitkala-Sa / Gertrude Bonnin

Section VI of Zitkala-Sa’s “The School Days of an Indian Girl” is arguably the most important part of the autobiography. In the first half of the section, Zitkala-Sa describes her return home for the summer after three years of being away at school. It is during this period that she is denied the privilege to go to a party with her brother and the other youth of the village despite her being of proper age. She is deeply saddened by this and cries to her mother when she hears the happy laughter of the young people on their way to the event. She describes the youth of her village when she writes the following.

“They were no more young braves in blankets and eagle plumes, nor Indian maids with prettily painted cheeks. They had gone three years to school in the East, and had become civilized. […] At these gatherings they talked English. I could speak English almost as well as my brother, but I was not properly dressed to be taken along. I had no hat, no ribbons, and no close-fitting gown. Since my return from school I had thrown away my shoes, and wore again the soft moccasins (Zitkala-Sa,”The School Days of an Indian Girl”, section VI).”

The young people of her village have completely embraced the white culture they have learned at school while she has made attempts to disregard it. As a result, Zitkala-Sa has struggled to fit in. When she is at school, she struggles to conform with the demands of her teachers because she is unable to completely let go of her traditional Native American mannerisms. However, when she is home, she also has trouble fitting in due to her peers complete acceptance of white christian culture. By comparing/contrasting the great differences and similarities between American Indian and White culture, Zitkala-Sa makes it evident to her audience why she is unable to truly feel like she belongs in either of her two worlds.

As a result of these feelings of loneliness and internal torment, Zitkala-Sa makes the decision at the end of the section to leave her village and go to Eastern school. She writes, “I rode on the white man’s iron steed, thinking it would bring me back to my mother in a few winters, when I should be grown tall, and there would be congenial friends awaiting me (Zitkala-Sa,”The School Days of an Indian Girl”, section VI).” What I found most interesting about this short passage was her choice of diction. When referring to the train, she calls it the “white man’s iron steed”. This articulates to her audience a separation between what belongs to the white man and what belongs to her people. However, at the end of the sentence when she describes her eventual return to the village in which she grew up, she calls it her return to her mother. I felt that her not mentioning this return as one to her village as she had earlier when she went back for the summer but rather one to her mother was intentional. By not doing so, it eliminates the idea that this is her home where she is most comfortable. Instead, it implies that it is no longer a place that belongs to her; it is simply the place where her mother is located. This section leaves her audience with the heartbreaking conclusion that Zitkala-Sa is stuck between two worlds, neither of which allow her to truly feel at home.

 

Blog Post 3: Henry David Thoreau

Henry David Thoreau’s essay Resistance to Civil Government expresses his very interesting and controversial views on government interference. In the very beginning of the essay Thoreau states his agreement with the motto “Government is best which governs least” and goes on to explain why he feels this way in paragraph 2. He explains that the presence of a government is necessary in order to give people the satisfaction of knowing there is order. However, he continues on to say that the American government is credited as being strong when the real strength comes from the very people it governs. He then makes a controversial claim that the only times the government has truly been useful is when it was uninvolved and points out its failure to keep the country free, settle the West, and educate its citizens. He believes the credit of those achievements belongs to the American people and concludes by explaining how many more successes there would be without government interference.

The only thing more interesting about the ideas within Thoreau’s essay is the way in which he explores them. For starters, Thoreau depends heavily on pathos. He does an excellent job of appealing to the readers emotion in paragraph 2 when he states, “Yet this government never of itself furthered any enterprise, but by the alacrity with which it got out of its way. It does not keep the country free. It does not settle the West. It does not educate. The character inherent in the American people has done all that has been accomplished.” (Thoreau, Resistance to Civil Government). As a reader, the thought of the American government being credited for work that they may contributed to would definitely cause anger. The quote gives off the impression that the hard work of average American citizens will continue to go unrecognized and  results in his readers having negative feelings toward government intervention.  In addition, he also relies heavily on symbolism. For example, he writes, “ It [The American Government] has not the vitality and force of a single living man; for a single man can bend it to his will. It is a sort of wooden gun to the people themselves.” (Thoreau, Resistance to Civil Government, paragraph 2). The use of a wooden gun as a symbol for the American Government is excellent when trying to persuade readers to be weary of excessive government involvement. It implies that its only use is for show but provides no real force. By putting this image in the mind of his readers, Thoreau is able to illustrate how useless the government is without the support and backing of the citizens in which it governs. His interesting uses of both pathos and symbolism greatly aid him in drawing this point home and persuading his readers. 

 

Blog Post 2: Harriet Beecher Stowe

Uncle Toms Cabin is arguably one of the most influential pieces of literature in American history. Its author, Harriet Beecher Stowe, wrote the novel with the intentions of sparking an anti-slavery movement that would put a stop to the slave trade altogether. In order to do so, Stowe uses several rhetorical strategies throughout the novel to persuade her readers. One device that she uses quite frequently to make an impact on her readers is literary dialect. As we are introduced to various characters, rather than the narrator restating their comments, we are able to read each individuals statements in their own way of speaking. For example, in Chapter 3 Aunt Chloe is having a conversation with Uncle Tom in their cabin and says, “Pity, now, Tom couldn’t,” said Aunt Chloe, on whose benevolent heart the idea of Tom’s benighted condition seemed to make a strong impression. “Ye oughter just ask […..] we ought al’ays to ‘member that,” said Aunt Chloe, looking quite serious.” Being that Aunt Chloe grew up on the plantation and never had a chance to be educated, one can assume her speech would be affected. Stowe’s consistent use of literary dialect further draws attention to this injustice and makes the reader pity Aunt Chloe making it evident to the reader that the system in which these individuals are forced to abide by has failed them.

In addition, Stowe makes several attempts to appeal to the emotions of her readers. In chapter 9 of the novel Eliza explains to the Birds why she had to run away from her plantation with her son. Once she finishes her tale, Stowe describes the families reaction by stating, “The two little boys, after a desperate rummaging in their pockets, in search of those pocket-handkerchiefs which mothers know are never to be found there, had thrown themselves disconsolately into the skirts of their mother’s gown, where they were sobbing, and wiping their eyes and noses, to their hearts’ content;—Mrs. Bird had her face fairly hidden in her pocket-handkerchief; and old Dinah, with tears streaming down her black, honest face, was ejaculating, “Lord have mercy on us!” with all the fervor of a camp-meeting;—while old Cudjoe, rubbing his eyes very hard with his cuffs, and making a most uncommon variety of wry faces, occasionally responded in the same key, with great fervor. Our senator was a statesman, and of course could not be expected to cry, like other mortals; and so he turned his back to the company, and looked out of the window, and seemed particularly busy in clearing his throat and wiping his spectacle-glasses, occasionally blowing his nose in a manner that was calculated to excite suspicion, had any one been in a state to observe critically.” Eliza’s story was able to pull at the heartstrings of all of the people she told including a Senator who prides himself in his ability to always think logically. This allowed the reader to see how even the most logical of individuals could see why slavery is wrong. This appeal to emotion through the use of this dramatic scene definitely aided Stowe when shaping her readers response to the system of slavery. 

Blog Post 1: Benjamin Franklin

In his autobiography, Benjamin Franklin extensively discusses the importance of being viewed as a humble individual within the community. Humility is best described as the state of being modest regardless of ones rank or status. He alludes to the importance of living with humility when he writes, “In order to secure my credit and character as a tradesman, I took care not only to be in reality industrious and frugal, but to avoid all appearances to the contrary. I drest plainly; I was seen at no places of idle diversion. I never went out a fishing or shooting; a book, indeed, sometimes debauch’d me from my work, but that was seldom, snug, and gave no scandal; and, to show that I was not above my business, I sometimes brought home the paper I purchas’d at the stores thro’ the streets on a wheelbarrow.” (Franklin, Autobiography, Chapter 8, Paragraph 6) He makes it clear in his writing that he is in all aspects able to live lavishly and take a break from his work, but made the choice not to in order to show that he “was not above his business”. He further drives this point home when discussing his wife by stating, “We have an English proverb that says, He that would thrive, must ask his wife. It was lucky for me that I had one as much dispos’d to industry and frugality as myself. She assisted me chearfully in my business, folding and stitching pamphlets, [….] being call’d one morning to breakfast, I found it in a China bowl, with a spoon of silver! They had been bought for me without my knowledge by my wife, and had cost her the enormous sum of three-and-twenty shillings, for which she had no other excuse or apology to make, but that she thought her husband deserv’d a silver spoon and China bowl as well as any of his neighbors. This was the first appearance of plate and China in our house, which afterward, in a course of years, as our wealth increas’d, augmented gradually to several hundred pounds in value.”(Franklin, Autobiography, Chapter 8, Paragraph 22). Again, he expresses the measures he and his wife took to live a humble lifestyle regardless of their wealth and ability to live lavishly. 

There are several times throughout the Autobiography where you feel as if Franklin is trying to persuade his audience to adopt the idea that living with humility should be the goal of each American. His frequent use of satire is very effective when making this point. In the sixth paragraph of Chapter 8, Franklin describes at great detail the measures he takes to always appear humble and hardworking. Immediately after he states the following, “In the meantime, Keimer’s credit and business declining daily, he was at last forc’d to sell his printing-house to satisfy his creditors. He went to Barbadoes, and there lived some years in very poor circumstances.” (Franklin, Autobiography, Chapter 8, Paragraph 6). Rather than simply relying on his personal experiences to showcase the importance of a humble lifestyle, Franklin uses satire to ridicule the mistakes made by his peers. Comparing the wealth he’s gained after living humbly compared to the wealth lost by his peer after living above his means is extremely persuasive and successfully showcases his theory to the reader.