“Good Country People” is a classic example of using irony as a technique to add meaning to a story. Irony functions on several different levels throughout the play. Examples of this range range from O'Connor's use of clearly ironic dialogue to the dramatic irony that unfolds between Manley and Joy-Hulga. However, the most obvious examples can be found in O'Connor's characterization of "good country people". The technique of irony is applied largely to the names and behaviors of the characters to present the contradictions between their expectations and their reality. O'Connor uses his characters to explore common notions about "good" and "bad" people. By using their expectations of each other, O'Connor ultimately exposes their "deformities", both literally and figuratively. Like Joy's wooden leg, the irony in "Good Country People" embodies what is hollow and artificial in its characters. The story centers around a small cast. In it, Mrs. Hopewell and her daughter Joy, whose name has been changed to Hulga, live on a farm with their tenants, Mrs. Freeman and her two daughters, Glynese and Carramae. Interestingly, Mrs. Hopewell calls the Freeman Girls Glycerin and Caramel while refusing to call her own daughter anything other than Joy. “Good County People” is told through the interactions of this dysfunctional group of women and their chance encounter with Bible-selling con man Manley Pointer. It’s the story of some “good country people”. The ironic quality of each character's name is immediately apparent. Joy Hopewell, a woman paralyzed in a horrific hunting accident, is portrayed as bitter, sullen and nihilistic. She is anything but caring or cheerful. Her mother named her daughter because she expected her ch...... middle of paper ......r to say she loves her; and even, to remove his antlered leg as a bazaar display of confidence. All this before reliving his hollow bible and running away with his artificial limb “Good Country People” is a masterfully written example of irony as a method of characterization. It is more than a mockery or a satire. Flannery O'Connor uses characterization to give this short play a deep emotional impact. When Manley Pointer leaves Hulga Hopewell in the barn loft, helpless and desperate. He states that she "...isn't that smart." That he “…believes in nothing even since [he] was born” at the very moment he walks away. Here we see all the irony of the characters' names. These titles have multi-faceted meanings and expose each character's inability to recognize themselves and others as they are. Instead, they favor their most cherished assumptions until the horrible truth escapes their sight..