Story Publication Date:
Summer 1946
“The Complete Stories” Publication:
Farrar, Straus and Giroux; First edition (January 1, 1971)
Story Summary:
The realistic story of a recent New York transplant from the South, an old man name Dudley moves into the city at the suggestion of his adult daughter. He can’t help but keep comparing his life of spacious freedom and pride in the South to the crammed, isolated and imprisoned lifestyle he feels within his daughter’s apartment. The geranium plant, located on the window sill directly across from the apartment window he gazes out of each morning, is his only stable morning routine until one day it mysteriously disappears.
Short Story Review:
This poignant story is so psychological at its core that there are so many layers and themes to explore as a deconstruction piece. First, it makes readers reflect on the theme of old age/aging from both the stark contrasts of Old Dudley’s viewpoint and his daughter’s as well. He cannot adjust to his new life in the new environment and although his life in the South was also not necessarily exciting per say, he felt comfortable and powerful knowing what to expect out of life. On the other hand, his daughter wrestles with the need to take care of her father, but also deal with his complaints and lethargically spent days.
Next, the geranium plant that Old Dudley obsesses over can be seen as a metaphor for his own life at this point. He feels like a plant trapped in a planter on a city sill when he should actually be free to roam in the wild outside in the countryside. The flower plant is only allowed to see the sun at the will of the owner. Dudley also expresses his frustration at the loss of control over his own life. The story, at large, took my to such a solemn place as I reflected on the life of my grandpa and even my dad. Their internal feelings of helplessness and purposelessness made me empathize with the elderly and even the sickly. Even more surprisingly, it made me think about how I would spend my last days. I hope it will be spent worshiping the Lord in His presence as I eagerly await to transplant to my real Home.
Author’s Bio (Credits to Amazon):
Flannery O’Connor was born in Savannah, Georgia in 1925, the only child of Catholic parents. In 1945 she enrolled at the Georgia State College for Women. After earning her degree she continued her studies on the University of Iowa’s writing program, and her first published story, ‘The Geranium’, was written while she was still a student. Her writing is best-known for its explorations of religious themes and southern racial issues, and for combining the comic with the tragic.
After university, she moved to New York where she continued to write. In 1952 she learned that she was dying of lupus, a disease which had afflicted her father. For the rest of her life, she and her mother lived on the family dairy farm, Andalusia, outside Millidgeville, Georgia. For pleasure she raised peacocks, pheasants, swans, geese, chickens and Muscovy ducks. She was a good amateur painter. She died in the summer of 1964.
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