“Good Country People” is a classic example of using irony as a technique to imbue a story with meaning. The irony works on many different levels throughout the piece. Examples of this range from O'Connor's use of clearly ironic dialogue to the dramatic irony that develops between Manley and Joy-Hulga. However the most obvious examples can be found in O'Connor's characterization of these, "Good Country People". The technique of irony is prominently applied to the characters' names and behaviors to present the contradictions between their expectations and their reality. O'Connor uses her characters to explore common notions about "good" and "bad" people. Using their expectations of each other, O'Connor ultimately exposes their literal and figurative "deformities." Like Joy's woodsy leg, Irony in “Good Country People,” embodies what is hollow and artificial in his characters. The story centers on a small cast. In it Mrs. Hopewell and her daughter Joy, who has had her name 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 she refuses to call her 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 artist Manley Pointer. It is a story of a few, not exactly "good country people". The tongue-in-cheek quality of each character's name is immediately apparent. Joy Hopewell, a woman paralyzed in a gruesome hunting accident, is described as bitter, morose and nihilistic. She is anything but well-wishing or joyful. Her mother called her daughter because she expected her ch...... middle of paper ......r to say that she loves him; and even, taking off the wooden leg as a bazaar show of confidence. All before reliving his empty bible and running away with his artificial limb. “Good Country People” is a masterfully written example of irony as a method of characterization. It's more than sarcasm or satire. Flannery O'Connor uses characterization to give this short piece a deep emotional impact. When Manley Pointer leaves Hulga Hopewell in the barn, helpless and hopeless. She states that she "...isn't that smart." That he "...has believed in nothing even since [he] was born" just as he slips away. Here we see all the irony of the characters' names. These titles contain multifaceted meanings and expose each character's inability to recognize themselves and others as they are. Instead, they prefer their cherished assumptions until the ugly truth escapes sight..