Flannery O Connor's Revelation

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In the story Revelation, by Flannery O’Connor, Mrs. Turpin believes she is a Christian. Instead of a Christian, she is judgmental and a racist who shows no signs of grace toward anyone. It is obvious to the reader that she is not the good Christian she thinks she is. She sees herself as better than others, in particular those she calls white-trash and niggers. Mrs. Turpin really thought she was better than the negro women and thought to herself, “You could never say anything intelligent to a nigger. You could talk at them but not with them?” Mrs. Turpin sees herself as above others because she is white and a landowner. How she views others and judges them is inconsistent with true Christianity. The only name revealed in the waiting room, Mary Grace, as her name implies, is the symbol of grace in the story. Mary Grace is used to show that Mrs. Turpin is actually a hypocrite. Mrs. Turpin is a very selfish, self absorbed person, clearly noted in her question to Grace, when Grace is having her seizure, “What you to say to me?” Mrs. Turpin showed no concern for …show more content…

Turpin is still upset with Mary Grace for calling her “a warthog from hell” she has a revelation. She first has a conversation with God asking him “What did you send me a message like that for?” As Mrs. Turpin is comparing herself to other people she has a vision. In this vision she sees all the people, the white-trash, the niggers, those she thought as less then her, on their way to heaven. All of these people where in front of her and those that she thought to be, “like herself and Claud, had always had a little of everything and the God-given wit to use it right,” were in the back of the line. It took this revelation for Mrs. Turpin to see her thoughts about being first and others being less than her were wrong. Mrs. Turpin for the first time realized we are all equal in Gods eyes. We are His creation, all are in need of His amazing grace for we all fall short of God, but His grace is all we