Good Country People Mrs Hopewell Character Analysis

373 Words2 Pages
Mrs. Hopewell’s Denial Discombobulated, deranged, or in denial? In Flannery O'Connor's short story, “Good Country People”, Mrs. Hopewell’s character reflects a life of denial as she lives with her still at home, thirty-two year old daughter, Joy. Throughout the story, Mrs. Hopewell denies Joy’s physical as well as mental state by treating her as an unknowledgeable child and by believing that Joy will one day be a successful woman, all because her own desires for Joy do not become reality.
This story opens with Mrs. Hopewell and an overbearing neighbor woman, Mrs. Freeman talking over breakfast. Mrs. Freeman, is always quick to judge anything that displeases her and Joy is often her target since Joy, although highly educated, remains living