A Good Country People

"Good Country People" deals with a woman named Hulga, who, because of her experience and her degree in Philosophy, feels she is intellectually superior to everyone in her surroundings. She has been physically handicapped since the age of ten and has not led a "normal" life; because of this she alienates herself from her environment (O'Connor 173). The author uses Hulga to demonstrate how alienation and intellectual superiority can damage relationships, stunt intellectual and emotional growth, and blind one to reality.

Due to her handicap she has become a very isolated and spiteful person. Hulga despises her situation and ...