Andriani Kusuma Wardani
2013130047
American
Institution Studies
Ø Anecdote
Religion is a social
institution that answers questions and explains the seemingly inexplicable.
Religion provides explanations for why things happen and demystifies the ideas
of birth and death.[1]
In Indonesia, religious institution has an important position. Function of religious
institution especially provides an explanation for events that seem difficult
to understand. Through the religious institution, we can release from anxiety. There are many function in this institution. In this paper, I use religious institution concept. Through this
institution, I want to analyze
the condition of religious institution in "A Good Man is Hard to Find" short story by Flannery
O'Connor. I also analyze about
the function of religious which is illustrated in the short story in that time.
CHAPTER
I
INTRODUCTION
Ø Background
Narrative in the decades following World War II resists
generalization. It was extremely various and multifaceted. American writers in
the postwar decades developed a postmodern sensibility. Americans streamed back
to church in unprecedented numbers. The baby boom (those born between 1946 and
1965) had begun, and parents of the first baby boomers moved into the suburbs
and filled the pews, establishing church and family as the twin pillars of
security and respectability. Religious membership, church funding,
institutional building, and traditional faith and practice all increased in the
1950s. At midcentury, things looked very good for Christian America. In this paper, I will analyze
about the condition in that era through religious institution. As we know, religion is very important in our lives.
Based on http://www.sparknotes.com/sociology/social-institutions/section4.rhtml, religion is a social institution that answers questions and explains the
seemingly inexplicable. Religion provides explanations for why things happen
and demystifies the ideas of birth and death. Religious institution has manifest and latent
function. In this analysis, I use "A Good Man is Hard to Find" short story by Flannery
O'Connor. I want to analyze about the condition of religious institution in this short story and know what the religious institution which used in this era.
This short story tells about a family
gets ready to vacation in Florida, but the grandmother tries to justify a visit
to Tennessee instead, rationalizing her desire by citing a murderer’s recent
escape. On the way to Florida, the grandmother reminisces about the past and
convinces Bailey to take a backroad to see an old house she remembers. The
grandmother’s cat escapes, causing the car to crash into a ditch. The escaped
convict, called the Misfit, pulls up with his cronies, and the grandmother
informs him that she recognizes him. The family is led into the woods to be
murdered, while the Misfit talks with the grandmother about his religious
doubts. In a moment of Christian sympathy, the grandmother informs the Misfit
that he is one of her children. The Misfit shoots her and says if “it had been
somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life” she would have been a
good woman. He yells at a crony who says the murders were fun.
Ø Literary
Review
According to "Outline of
American Literature Book", American
writers in the postwar decades developed a postmodern sensibility. The author
in this era is Flannery
O'Connor. The uneducated southern characters who people her novels
often create violence through superstition or religion. Based on http://digitalcommons.northgeorgia.edu/papersandpubs/vol3/iss1/5/ entitled "Jesus Thrown Everything Off
Balance" in Flannery
O'Connor’s A Good Man is Hard to Find, the author is Abbie C. Harris. He tells about demonstrates
the religious decay of the South. O’Connor creates a tale of hypocrisy, sin,
and the hope of forgiveness in the Christ-Haunted South. I use different
concept from researcher before. I use religious institution concept in “A Good
Man is Hard to Find” short story by Flannery
O'Connor.
Ø Benefits
of Study
After I am analyze this short story, I can know
the function and the condition of religious institution in that time.
CHAPTER II
ANALYSIS
Ø Analysis Religious Institutions
with The Function in “A Good Man is Hard to Find” Short Story by Flannery O'Connor
In the 1950s, automobiles became more accessible to many
Americans, and people's mobility and freedom reached new proportions. O'Connor often used the automobile as a symbol in her writing. In addition
to "A Good Man Is Hard to Find”.
The
grandmother noticed how thin his shoulder blades were just behind his hat
because she was standing up looking down on him. "Do you ever pray?"
she asked.
(The Misfit) shook his head. All she saw was the black hat wiggle between his shoulder blades. "Nome," he said. (in short story A Good Man is Hard to Find, page 14).
(The Misfit) shook his head. All she saw was the black hat wiggle between his shoulder blades. "Nome," he said. (in short story A Good Man is Hard to Find, page 14).
From
the quotation above, we can know that the grandmother is the first person who
turns the conversation to religious territory. Nothing else in the story has
led us to think that religion is an important part of her life, and her own
values have more to do with being "decent" by society's standards
than with religion. It contains manifest
function of provide answers for human problems (meaning and purpose of
life).
"If you
would pray," the old lady said, "Jesus would help you."
"That's right," The Misfit said.
"Well then, why don't you pray?" she asked trembling with delight suddenly.
"I don't want no help," he said. "I'm doing all right by myself."( in short story A Good Man is Hard to Find, page 16).
"That's right," The Misfit said.
"Well then, why don't you pray?" she asked trembling with delight suddenly.
"I don't want no help," he said. "I'm doing all right by myself."( in short story A Good Man is Hard to Find, page 16).
From
the quotation above, we can know that the grandmother attempts to convince Misfit
to pray. She hopes that she can win out in the end. The Misfit doesn't pray,
because he doesn't want any help. It seems like he wants something else, or is
genuinely dissatisfied with his life and with the way he is. It contains manifest function of provide answers for human problems
(meaning and purpose of life, death) and release
from anxiety.
There
was nothing around her but woods. (The grandmother) wanted to tell him that he
must pray. She opened and closed her mouth several times before anything came
out. Finally she found herself saying, "Jesus. Jesus," meaning, Jesus
will help you, but the way she was saying it, it sounded as if she might be
cursing (in short story A Good Man is Hard to Find, page 16).
From
the quotation above, the grandmother has already lost her son and grandson, her
daughter-in-law, June Star, and the baby. She perhaps cursing him for letting
all of this happen. There is something inauthentic about her words because she
doesn't believe what she is saying. It contains manifest function of release from anxiety.
Ø
Analysis
The Function of Family Institution in 1946-1965
The baby boom (those born between 1946 and
1965) had begun, and parents of the first baby boomers moved into the suburbs
and filled the pews, establishing church and family as the twin pillars of security and
respectability. This era often create violence
through
superstition or religion.
(The
Misfit): "My daddy said I was a different breed of dog from my brothers
and sisters. 'You know,' Daddy said, 'it's some that can live their whole life
out without asking about it and it's others has to know why it is, and this boy
is one of the latters. He's going to be into everything!" (in short story
A Good Man is Hard to Find, page 13).
From
the quotation above, we can look at Misfit's personality. He is curious. He is
not just a thoughtless killer. What he is thought about, rather seriously as we
will see, is religion. It contains manifest
function of provide answers for human problems (meaning of life).
"I
was a gospel singer for a while," The Misfit said. "I been most
everything. Been in the arm service both land and sea, at home and abroad, been
twict married, been an undertaker, been with the railroads, plowed Mother
Earth, been in a tornado, seen a man burnt alive oncet…"(in short story A
Good Man is Hard to Find, page 15).
From
the quotation above, we can know that Misfit is a gospel singer gives some
background to his past relationship to religion. He also mention that his
father is a member of a Baptist Church. He is still looking for something or
has given up looking altogether. It contains manifest function of provide answers for human problems
(meaning and purpose of life).
"Jesus
was the only One that ever raised the dead," The Misfit continued,
"and He shouldn't have done it. He shown everything off balance. If He did
what He said, then it's nothing for you to do but throw away everything and
follow Him, and if He didn't, then it's nothing for you to do but enjoy the few
minutes you got left the best way you can by killing somebody or burning down
his house or doing some other meanness to him. No pleasure but meanness,"
he said and his voice had become almost a snarl (in short story A Good Man is
Hard to Find, page 17).
From
the quotation above, The Misfit has done a lot of thinking about Jesus, and in
his own way, seems to take Jesus much more seriously than the grandmother does.
He doesn't actually believe in God. It almost sounds as if he wants to believe,
and is acting out of anger because he cannot do so. It contains manifest
function of provide answers for human
problems (meaning and purpose of life, death, after death).
(The
grandmother) 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. The Misfit
sprang back as if a snake had bitten him and shot her three times through the
chest (in short story A Good Man is Hard to Find, page 18).
From the quotation above, the grandmother's "moment
of grace" and The Misfit's response. It is the central moment of the
story. That is the way genuine good appears to genuine evil. It contains
manifest function of help maintain
social control.
CHAPTER III
CONCLUSION
After I am analyze this short story
with the function of religious institution, I get the conclusion. In that 1950s, automobiles became more accessible to many Americans,and
people's mobility and freedom reached new proportions. American writers in the postwar decades
developed a postmodern sensibility. O'Connor often used the automobile as a symbol in her writing. In
short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” has many manifest function of
religious institution which applied in the short story. It is appropriate with
the era of this short story.
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