The Grandmother
In this story, this character considers herself morally superior than the rest of the people basically because she is a lady. This character makes frequent judgments on others. She claims that her conscience is the main driving force in her life and she considers herself perfect in the way she does her activities. She claims that she could not afford to allow her children to walk in the same direction like Misfit did so that her conscience is not compromised. This character also criticized the mother of the children by claiming that she never allowed the children to travel in order to have a broad experience. She even compared the head of that mother to pa cabbage. The vulnerability of this character is also exposed when criticizes John Wesley for not paying respect to his state, Georgia. The grandmother also found in most situations judging people for lack of good habit or deeds in the world then. She considers herself superior and she selectively put on a dress and hat claiming that her being a lady is the most important virtue that makes her character unique.
The Grandmother never took to realize that she dishonest, hypocritical and selfish but she kept on judging others. Her vulnerability is clearly seen when her conscience is compromised at the point she lied to the children about the panel which was a secret, she also sneaked Pitty Sing into a car and she also failed in revealing her mistake in location the house.
The Grandmother also betrayed her conscience in a situation where Misfit planned to murder the family systematically. She betrayed herself by failing to beg for the lives of her grandchildren and children but she only begged for her own life on the basis that she is a lady. She could not believe that Misfit wanted to kill a lady. She believed in herself that Misfit could not kill her due to her good moral code. This makes her a victim of circumstances by revealing that she is selfish and egocentric. She also does not care about other people and this compromises her earlier claims that people lack good in the world today. Misfit could not take into consideration into the Grandmother’s claim of being morally good and upright. The Grandmother realized that she has been doing wrong when she found that Misfit could not take heed of her plea. She finally realized she was not superior for considering herself a lady since Misfit decided to murder her too.
Her failure to understand others and treat people with compassion led to her death. The habit of considering herself superior led to her death. Her character or behavior of considering selfishness and hypocrisy made her vulnerable to murder by her child. She treated her son unfairly by criticizing him and this made Misfit not hear her plea at the last minute. Her pride led to her death.
Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?-Joyce Carol Oates
Connie
This character is a girl who refused to behave like a good girl or daughter by engaging in sexual pleasures due to her claims of having good looks. She considered herself very attractive to men. She spent most of her time away from home where she engaged in making fun. This character was obsessed about listening to music, hanging out as well as good looks. She took advantage of the fact that men and boys considered her to be attractive therefore she explored her sexuality. She engaged in a weird manner of dressing, laughing and talking in order to attract men and boys. She considered herself superior than other girls due to the attention given by men and boys. She behaved in a different manner when she is away from home while acting a good girl when she is t home. This led to a split personality making her a victim of circumstances.
Connie’s sexuality was exposed to her family when Arnold’s friend came to her home place. She also desperately showed attraction to older men but she later found reality to be terrific when she was approached by an old man called Arnold. Arnold considered Connie’s behavior to be childish. Connie found that her vie of adulthood was very different from what she perceived. She also found that her notion of attractiveness and romance proposed by her pop songs was not a reality but just hypothetical and childish acts. Connie eventually proved herself to be wrong in her perception about life and adulthood. The conditions of attractiveness to men, dress code and laughing manner subjected Connie to a situation that later made her realize that she was wrong.
In these two short stories, it is clearly seen that the two characters were made victims of circumstances due to the fact that they perceived life in a hypothetical and ideal manner. Both characters had a wrong perception of the reality of life. This has therefore made them vulnerable to the realities of life. Both characters were seen learning the reality of life at their last minutes. The two short stories therefore try to portray the circumstances and behaviors which may make people vulnerable to unpleasant situations. They also warn against these acts or habits that may make people victims of circumstances.The stories also show the truth of life and discourages the selfishness and hypocrisy.
Works Cited
O'Connor, Flannery, and Marguerite Gavin. A Good Man Is Hard to Find: And Other Stories. Ashland: Blackstone Audio, Inc, 2010. Print.
Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?-Joyce Carol Oates
