Literature Analysis - Book Report/Review Example

The symbolic qualities thus make the stories less conducive to strictly psychological analyses in terms of realistic motives and intentions. Both characters are driven by illusions and unachievable dreams. Prior to the breakdown of the grandmother's self-image readers witness the rather pitiful sight of an old woman holding on to an illusion that she still possesses the authority over family. More precisely, the grandmother can realistically expect to continue being treated with due respect by family, with their conservative appreciation for age and tradition.

The family does not want to visit Tennessee, but entreaties and threats of the grandmother force them to change their plans. June Star said "She has to go everywhere we go". The grandmother replies: "Just remember that the next time you want me to curl your hair" (O'Connor n.d.). Similar to O'Connor's character, in Where are you going, Where have you been the conflict is in the character of Connie. On the one hand, she wants to be independent, but on the other hand Connie needs to be guided and supported by family members.

Connie's actions are not logical and self-aware. She wants to attract attention of boys. "But all the boys fell back and dissolved into a single face that was not even a face but an idea, a feeling, mixed up with the urgent insistent pounding of the music and the humid night air of July" (Oates 1991). Connie's personality is in a state of crisis, the complete loss of social persona causing a profound psychological imbalance, which her static mental constitution cannot tolerate (Johnson 38). Another similarity is that both characters pay a special attention to their appearance and the way of dressing.

O'Connor describes: "the grandmother had on a navy blue straw sailor hat with a bunch of white violets on the brim and a navy blue dress . In case of an accident, anyone would know at once that she was a lady (O'Connor, n.d.). Similar to the grandmother, Connie tries to express her personality and self-identity in unique style of clothing and behavior. Connie "knew she was pretty and that was everything" (Oates 1991). As the most important, both characters feel pressure from family members who oppose their dress and hairstyle.

Oates underlines that Connie feels pressure from her family: "How've you got your hair fixed-what the hell stinks Hair spray You don't see your sister using that junk." (Oates 1991). The reconstitution of their static personalities involves not only a confrontation with hitherto repressed individuality but also the first awareness of what it is to be a woman (Johnson 39). Both works have similar story conflict and ending. In Where are you going, Where have you been Connie escapes with a stranger while in A Good Man is hard to Find the grandmother is killed by the criminal.

It is possible to say that this is a natural ending for both stories because both characters try to escape reality living in the world of dreams and illusions. They experience mental crisis and a psychological turnabout: what is conscious becomes repressed, whereas what lay in the unconscious is brought to the surface. Both authors use the theme of religion