VOICE ONE:
I’M SHIRLEY GRIFFITH.
VOICE TWO:
AND I’M RAY FREEMAN WITH THE VOA SPECIAL ENGLISH PROGRAM, PEOPLEIN AMERICA. TODAY, WE TELL ABOUT WRITER FLANNERY O’CONNOR.
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VOICE ONE:
LATE IN HER LIFE SOMEONE ASKED THE AMERICAN WRITER FLANNERYO’CONNOR WHY SHE WROTE. SHE SAID, “BECAUSE I AM GOOD AT IT.”
SHE WAS GOOD. YET, SHE WAS NOT ALWAYS AS GOOD A WRITER AS SHEBECAME. SHE IMPROVED BECAUSE SHE LISTENED TO OTHERS. SHE CHANGED HERSTORIES. SHE RE-WROTE THEM, THEN RE-WROTE THEM AGAIN, ALWAYS WORKINGTO IMPROVE WHAT SHE WAS CREATING.
FLANNERY HAD ALWAYS WANTED TO BE A WRITER. AFTER SHE GRADUATEDFROM GEORGIA STATE COLLEGE FOR WOMEN, SHE ASKED TO BE ACCEPTED AT AWRITING PROGRAM AT THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA. THE HEAD OF THESCHOOL FOUND IT DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND HER SOUTHERN SPEECH. HEASKED HER TO WRITE WHAT SHE WANTED. THEN HE ASKED TO SEE SOMEEXAMPLES OF HER WORK.
HE SAW IMMEDIATELY THAT THE WRITING WAS FULL OF IMAGINATION ANDBRIGHT WITH KNOWLEDGE, LIKE FLANNERY O’CONNOR HERSELF.
VOICE TWO:
MARY FLANNERY O’CONNOR WAS BORN MARCH TWENTY-FIFTH,NINETEEN-TWENTY-FIVE, IN THE SOUTHERN CITY OF SAVANNAH, GEORGIA.
THE YEAR SHE WAS BORN, HER FATHER DEVELOPED A RARE DISEASE CALLEDLUPUS. HE DIED OF THE DISEASE IN NINETEEN-FORTY-ONE. BY THAT TIMETHE FAMILY WAS LIVING IN THE SMALL SOUTHERN TOWN OF MILLEDGEVILLE,GEORGIA, IN A HOUSE OWNED BY FLANNERY’S MOTHER.
LIFE IN A SMALL TOWN IN THE AMERICAN SOUTH WAS WHAT O’CONNOR KNEWBEST. YET SHE SAID, “IF YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE, YOU CAN GO ANYWHERE.”
VOICE ONE:
MANY PEOPLE IN THE TOWN OF MILLEDGEVILLE THOUGHT SHE WASDIFFERENT FROM OTHER GIRLS. SHE WAS KIND TO EVERYONE, BUT SHE SEEMEDTO STAND TO ONE SIDE OF WHAT WAS HAPPENING, AS IF SHE WANTED TO SEEIT BETTER. HER MOTHER WAS HER EXAMPLE. HER MOTHER SAID, “I WASBROUGHT UP TO BE NICE TO EVERYONE AND NOT TO TELL MY BUSINESS TOANYONE.”
FLANNERY ALSO DID NOT TALK ABOUT HERSELF. BUT IN HER WRITING ASILENT AND DISTANT ANGER EXPLODES FROM THE QUIET SURFACE OF HERSTORIES. SOME SEE HER AS A ROMAN CATHOLIC RELIGIOUS WRITER. THEY SEEHER ANGER AS THE SEARCH TO SAVE HER MORAL BEING THROUGH HER BELIEFIN JESUS CHRIST. OTHERS DO NOT DENY HER ROMAN CATHOLIC RELIGIOUSBELIEFS. YET THEY SEE HER NOT WRITING ABOUT THINGS, BUT PRESENTINGTHE THINGS THEMSELVES.
VOICE TWO:
WHEN SHE LEFT THE WRITING PROGRAM AT IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY SHEWAS INVITED TO JOIN A GROUP OF WRITERS AT THE YADDO WRITERS’ COLONY.YADDO IS AT SARATOGA SPRINGS IN NEW YORK STATE. IT PROVIDES A SMALLGROUP OF WRITERS WITH A HOME AND A PLACE TO WORK FOR A SHORT TIME.
THE FOLLOWING YEAR, NINETEEN-FORTY-NINE, SHE MOVED TO NEW YORKCITY. SHE SOON LEFT THE CITY AND LIVED WITH HER FRIEND ROBERTFITZGERALD AND HIS FAMILY IN THE NORTHEASTERN STATE OF CONNECTICUT.FITZGERALD SAYS O’CONNOR NEEDED TO BE ALONE TO WORK DURING THE DAY.AND SHE NEEDED HER FRIENDS TO TALK TO WHEN HER WORK WAS DONE.
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VOICE ONE:
WHILE WRITING HER FIRST NOVEL, WISE BLOOD, SHE WAS STRICKEN WITHTHE DISEASE, LUPUS, THAT HAD KILLED HER FATHER. THE TREATMENT FORLUPUS WEAKENED HER. SHE MOVED BACK TO GEORGIA AND LIVED THE REST OFHER LIFE WITH HER MOTHER ON A FARM OUTSIDE MILLEDGEVILLE. O’CONNORWAS STILL ABLE TO WRITE, TRAVEL, AND GIVE SPEECHES.
WISE BLOOD APPEARED IN NINETEEN-FIFTY-TWO. BOTH IT AND O’CONNOR’SSECOND NOVEL, THE VIOLENT BEAR IT AWAY, ARE ABOUT A YOUNG MANGROWING UP. IN BOTH BOOKS THE YOUNG MEN ARE UNWILLING TO ACCEPT THEWORK THEY WERE MOST FIT TO DO.
LIKE ALL OF FLANNERY O’CONNOR’S WRITING, THE BOOK IS FILLED WITHHUMOR, EVEN WHEN HER MEANING IS SERIOUS. IT SHOWS THE MIX OF ATRADITIONAL WORLD WITH A MODERN WORLD. IT ALSO SHOWS A BATTLE OFIDEAS EXPRESSED IN THE SIMPLE, COUNTRY TALK THAT O’CONNOR KNEW VERYWELL.
VOICE TWO:
IN WISE BLOOD A YOUNG MAN, HAZEL MOTES, LEAVES THE ARMY BUT FINDSHIS HOME TOWN EMPTY. HE FLEES TO A CITY, LOOKING FOR “A PLACE TOBE.” ON THE TRAIN HE ANNOUNCES THAT HE DOES NOT BELIEVE IN JESUSCHRIST. HE SAYS, “I WOULDN’T EVEN IF HE EXISTED. EVEN IF HE WAS ONTHIS TRAIN.”
HIS MOVING TO THE CITY IS AN ATTEMPT TO MOVE AWAY FROM THENATURAL WORLD AND BECOME A THING, A MACHINE. HE DECIDES THAT ALL HECAN KNOW IS WHAT HE CAN TOUCH AND SEE.
IN THE END, HOWEVER, HE DESTROYS HIS PHYSICAL SIGHT SO THAT HEMAY TRULY SEE, BECAUSE HE SAYS THAT WHEN HE HAD EYES HE WAS BLIND.CRITICS SAY HIS ACTION SEEMS TO SHOW THAT HE IS NO LONGER WILLING TODENY THE EXISTENCE OF JESUS BUT NOW IS WILLING TO FOLLOW HIM INTOTHE DARK.
THE NOVEL RECEIVED HIGH PRAISE FROM CRITICS. IT DID NOT BECOMEPOPULAR WITH THE PUBLIC, HOWEVER.
VOICE ONE:
O’CONNOR’S SECOND NOVEL, THE VIOLENT BEAR IT AWAY, WAS PUBLISHEDIN NINETEEN-SIXTY. LIKE WISE BLOOD, IT IS A STORY ABOUT A YOUNG MANLEARNING TO DEAL WITH LIFE.
THE BOOK OPENS WITH THE YOUNG MAN, FRANCIS MARION TARWATER,REFUSING TO DO THE TWO THINGS HIS GRANDFATHER HAD ORDERED HIM TO DO.THESE ARE TO BURY THE OLD MAN DEEP IN THE GROUND, AND TO BRINGRELIGION TO HIS UNCLE’S MENTALLY SICK CHILD.
INSTEAD, TARWATER BURNS THE HOUSE WHERE HIS GRANDFATHER DIED ANDLETS THE MENTALLY SICK CHILD DROWN DURING A RELIGIOUS CEREMONY.
VOICE TWO:
CRITICS SAY TARWATER’S VIOLENCE COMES FROM HIS ATTEMPT TO FINDTRUTH BY DENYING RELIGION. IN THE END, HOWEVER, HE ACCEPTS THAT HEHAS BEEN TOUCHED BY A DEEPER FORCE, THE FORCE OF THE WORD OF GOD,AND HE MUST ACCEPT THAT WORD.
BOTH OF O’CONNOR’S NOVELS EXPLORE THE LONG MOMENT OF FEAR WHEN AYOUNG MAN MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN THE DIFFICULTIES OF GROWING UP AND THESAFE WORLD OF A CHILD.
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VOICE ONE:
FLANNERY O’CONNOR IS AT LEAST AS WELL KNOWN FOR HER STORIES ASFOR HER NOVELS. HER FIRST BOOK OF STORIES, A GOOD MAN IS HARD TOFIND, APPEARED IN NINETEEN FIFTY-FIVE. IN IT SHE DEALS WITH MANY OFTHE IDEAS SHE WROTE ABOUT IN WISE BLOOD, SUCH AS THE SEARCH FORJESUS CHRIST.
IN MANY OF THE STORIES THERE IS A CONFLICT BETWEEN THE WORLD OFTHE SPIRIT AND THE WORLD OF THE BODY. IN THE STORY, “THE LIFE YOUSAVE MAY BE YOUR OWN,” A TRAVELLING WORKMAN WITH ONLY ONE ARM COMESTO A FARM. HE CLAIMS TO BE MORE CONCERNED WITH THINGS OF THE SPIRITTHAN WITH OBJECTS.
VOICE TWO:
THE WOMAN WHO OWNS THE FARM OFFERS TO LET HIM MARRY HER DEAFDAUGHTER. HE FINALLY AGREES WHEN THE MOTHER GIVES HIM THE FARM, HERCAR, AND SEVENTEEN DOLLARS FOR THE WEDDING TRIP. HE SAYS, “LADY, AMAN IS DIVIDED INTO TWO PARTS, BODY AND SPIRIT….THE BODY, LADY, ISLIKE A HOUSE: IT DON’T GO ANYWHERE; BUT THE SPIRIT, LADY, IS LIKE AAUTOMOBILE, ALWAYS ON THE MOVE….”
HE MARRIES THE DAUGHTER AND DRIVES OFF WITH HER. WHEN THEY STOPTO EAT, THE MAN LEAVES HER AND DRIVES OFF TOWARD THE CITY. ON THEWAY HE STOPS AND GIVES A RIDE TO A WANDERING BOY.
WE LEARN THAT WHEN THE ONE-ARMED MAN WAS A CHILD HIS MOTHER LEFTHIM. CRITICS SAY THAT WHEN HE HELPS THE BOY HE IS HELPING HIMSELF.
VOICE ONE:
IN NINETEEN-SIXTY-FOUR, O’CONNOR WAS OPERATED ON FOR A STOMACHDISEASE. ONE RESULT OF THIS OPERATION WAS THE RETURN OF LUPUS, THEDISEASE THAT KILLED HER FATHER. ON AUGUST THIRD,NINETEEN-SIXTY-FOUR, FLANNERY O’CONNOR DIED. SHE WAS THIRTY-NINEYEARS OLD.
NEAR THE END OF HER LIFE SHE SAID, “I’M A BORN CATHOLIC, ANDDEATH HAS ALWAYS BEEN BROTHER TO MY IMAGINATION.”
VOICE TWO:
THE NEXT YEAR, IN NINETEEN-SIXTY-FIVE, HER FINAL COLLECTION OFSTORIES, EVERYTHING THAT RISES MUST CONVERGE, APPEARED. IN IT SHESPEAKS OF THE CRUELTY OF DISEASE AND THE DEEPER CRUELTY THAT EXISTSBETWEEN PARENTS AND CHILDREN. IN THESE STORIES, GROWN CHILDREN AREIN A STRUGGLE WITH PARENTS THEY NEITHER LOVE NOR LEAVE. MANY OF THECHILDREN FEEL GUILTY ABOUT HATING THE MOTHERS WHO, THE CHILDRENFEEL, HAVE DESTROYED THEM THROUGH LOVE. THE CHILDREN WANT TO REBELVIOLENTLY, BUT THEY FEAR LOSING THEIR MOTHERS’ PROTECTION.
IN NINETEEN-SEVENTY-ONE, O’CONNOR’S COLLECTED STORIES WASPUBLISHED. THE BOOK CONTAINS MOST OF WHAT SHE WROTE. IT HAS ALL THESTORIES OF HER EARLIER COLLECTIONS. IT ALSO HAS EARLY VERSIONS OFBOTH NOVELS THAT WERE FIRST PUBLISHED AS STORIES. AND IT HAS PARTSOF AN UNCOMPLETED NOVEL AND AN UNPUBLISHED STORY.
IN NINETEEN-SEVENTY-TWO THIS LAST BOOK WON THE AMERICAN BOOKINDUSTRY’S HIGHEST PRIZE, THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD. AS ONE CRITICNOTED, FLANNERY O’CONNOR DID NOT LIVE LONG, BUT SHE LIVED DEEPLY,AND WROTE BEAUTIFULLY.
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VOICE ONE:
THIS SPECIAL ENGLISH PROGRAM WAS WRITTEN BY RICHARD THORMAN. I’MSHIRLEY GRIFFITH.
VOICE TWO:
AND I’M RAY FREEMAN. JOIN US AGAIN NEXT WEEK FOR ANOTHER PEOPLEIN AMERICA PROGRAM ON THE VOICE OF AMERICA.