Irony In Mrs. Hulga's Good Country People

The story “Good Country People” is based around four very different characters, and discusses the everyday objectives that they face. The main character Hulga is the well-educated atheist daughter of Mrs. Hopewell. Hulga who suffers from a deformity has a wooden leg and doesn’t really have much of a life outside of the farm. Mrs. Hopewell is a judgmental overbearing mother pushing her daughter to be something’s she’s not. Lastly Mrs. Freeman the nosey tenant and Manley Pointer a quick talking salesmen, that will try to swindle people out of more than their money are just some of the examples of everyday “Good Country People.” The story of “Good Country People” is full of irony as well as the characters and their names along with the roles

One of the essential characters in the story Mrs. Hopewell is quick to cast judgment. Believing that there are few “Good Country People” left and that the ones who are left are the “the salt of the earth” (450)! By the end of the story Mrs. Hopewell’s philosophy stands no ground because another main character that she believes is “Good Country People” turn out to be nothing more than a snake. The name choices of the characters in the story can be interpreted as ironic. For example Mrs. Freeman she has an ironic name because she really isn’t free of anything. She is a housemaid living as a tenant on a farm that doesn’t belong to her. Manley Pointer the fast talking traveling Bible salesman has an ironic name as well because by the end of the story the reader can conclude that he is anything but a man, and turns out to be nothing more but an immature little

To Hulga's surprise Manley had ulterior motives; he decides to steal her wooden leg. When she tries to retrieve the leg from him, he easily pushes her down, this leaving her feeling more handicap and more vulnerable than ever. Her reaction to him is not only outrage she’s embarrassed and feels completely violated. Physically vulnerable, she mumbled, "You're a fine Christian! You're just like them all — say one thing and do another..."