A Mysterious Revelation

In Flannery O’Connor’s short story “Revelation” she takes an ironic twist on Christian morality by focusing on judgment. Our protagonist, Mrs. Turpin, feels that she is incredibly blessed because God has given her “a little bit of everything” (75) and “made her a good woman” (75). Mrs. Turpin receives a revelation in the story. However, she is clearly not being told what she wants to hear. She is given the message that by judging others based on appearance and social class, she is undermining her own soul.
Mrs. Turpin expresses how she is thankful to God that He did not make her black, “white trash”, poor, ugly, or of a disagreeable disposition. While in the waiting room of the doctor’s office with her husband, the other characters who appear throughout this portion of the story (with the exception of Marcy Grace’s mother) represent what Mrs. Turpin wishes not to be as well as the groups that she is continually judging. She considers herself to be blessed in a way that is not truly grateful, but more arrogant and hypocritical. Her attitude is further revealed when she mentions how she sorts people into classes and considers herself and her husband, Claude, to be of almost the highest class possible.
Although Mrs. Turpin acts very judgmentally, the author wants us to assume that she is essentially a good person although she is extremely misguided. Through her love for her husband, it is apparent that she cares for more than just her own interests. She is being sent a revelation through the incident with Mary Grace because God seems to think that there is still hope for her and wants her to change. Mrs. Turpin’s attitude is also reflective of Flannery O’Connor’s views that during her lifetime that the South was a troubled place where the scourge of racism was the most socially profound.
Ironically, Mary Grace is more educated and sophisticated than Mrs. Turpin because she is studying hard and attending college. It seems as though God has taken the form of Mary Grace because Mrs. Turpin gets the sense that she has, “known her and disliked her all of her life--all of Mrs. Turpin’s life, it seemed too, not just all the girl’s life” (61) and that, “the girl did know her, knew her in some intense and personal way, beyond time and place and condition” (112). The timing of when Mary Grace looks up from her book to grimace at Mrs. Turpin is perfectly timed so that she does so just after Mrs. Turpin has either made a particularly harsh comment or had a very judgmental thought. Mary Grace’s name also has particular religious significance because “Mary” is the mother of God, and “Grace” is a state to which all pious individuals aspire. Flannery O’Connor also once said that, “Grace changes us and change is painful”, which is applicable to the story both literally and metaphorically due to Mary Grace’s attack on Mrs. Turpin and Mrs. Turpin’s later revelation.
When Mary Grace throws her book on human development at Mrs. Turpin, it is symbolic of Mrs. Turpin’s need to advance beyond her simple-minded opinions. The attack is an example of God working mysteriously and unexpectedly by appearing in unlikely and often inconvenient places. Initially, the attack in the waiting is clearly the last way that Mrs. Turpin would expect to have a life-altering revelation. However, she also recognizes that she has been “singled out for the message” (130) due to the celestial flicker in Mary Grace’s eyes.
Mrs. Turpin has an indignant conversation with God after the incident as she hoses down the hogs. The first vision she has of Mr. Turpin driving the field hands accompanied by a sense of sublime rapture shows the omnipresence of God and the ultimate insignificance of individual humans. Mrs. Turpin sees this first as way to humble her and guide her to the realization that she is not as important as she thinks herself to be. Her frustrated cry of, “Who do you think you are?” is both her question to God and her answer from God as the echo creates a chilling repetition.
The procession of souls that Mrs. Turpin sees shows black people, “white trash”, and disabled people along with people like the Turpins. However, the “outcasts” are traveling the past with joy and excitement, while the people blessed with “a little bit of everything” are more somber. When O’Connor says that “even their virtues were being burning away” she was likely referring to all pretentiousness and judgment by other humans instead of by God. Mrs. Turpin is being told that she needs to use the privileges she has been given to make a positive impact instead of using them as a way to place herself above those around her. (810)