Ultimate Judgment

Ultimate Judgment

"All my stories are about the action of grace on a character who is not very willing to support it, but most people think of these stories as hard, hopeless, and brutal." - Flannery O'Connor

Flannery O'Connor published her famous short story "Revelation" in the year of 1965. Mrs. O'Connor, a Catholic, based her writing themes around her religious views. The short story "Revelation" has a simple theme; do not judge a book by its cover. O'Connor uses the devices character, setting, and plot to help portray her theme in the story. Revelation is a foreshadowing of what the main character is going to experience in the story symbolically and literally. O'Connor uses these literary devices to help lead up the character's ultimate life changing "revelation".

In the story "Revelation" O'Connor introduces many characters all of which come from different backgrounds, races (African American and White) and social class. The main character being Mrs. Turpin and her husband Claud are two higher class white "folks" who happen to be very Christian and own their land. Other characters displayed are an upper class pleasant white woman and her ugly daughter Mary Grace, a common red-headed woman, an older man, an old woman, a white trash woman and her grotesque child, an African American delivery boy, and Mrs. Turpin's "negro" workers. The importance of showing various characters is to help lead up to the O'Connor's theme. Mrs. Turpin being the main character in which the story is focused is very judgmental of those who are on a lower social status than herself. Being in a room surrounded with others not in her social class, she begins to judge each and every one of the other characters. For example, with a quote from the reading, "If Jesus had said to her before he made her, 'There's only two places available for you. You can either be a nigger of white trash..." Mrs. Turpin often used the name of Christ while making her judgments of other thanking the Lord for not making her anything lower than her class of people. Mary Grace in particular is the major character in which Mrs. Turpin focuses her attention most on. Grace is a bright college student with a great mind but not so appealing physical appearances as, Mrs. Turpin does not hesitate to point out. From the beginning of the story Mrs. Turpin notices the scolding looks and unfriendly attitude Grace holds towards her. This tension becomes a key importance in the story and becomes a part of Mrs. Turpin's "revelation".

The reason for the broad horizon of people is because of the setting in which the story takes place. A doctor's waiting room is an essential key in the story. O'Connor cleverly made the setting to be a waiting room because it is a place of equality and neutrality. One thing all people have in common no matter their background or social class is illness. A doctor's office offers a neutral place for people of all types to interact. The