How To Create a Sociopath (Good Country People Book Analysis)

Mary Flannery O’Connor was one of the most influential Southern writers and could paint a picture with words. O’Connor grew up in rural Georgia and would remain in Georgia through college at Georgia State. She attended the University of Iowa writing workshop in 1945 and soon would publish her first story Geranium in 1946. She followed up that story with Wiseblood in 1952 and A Good Man is Hard to Find in 1953. She proceeded to win awards such as the O. Henry Award in 1957 and the National Book Award in 1972. O’Connor was an accomplished writer for her time but today her work seems even more appreciated. O’Connor would continue to publish books and short stories until she passed away. She unfortunately died at the age of 39 due to lupus but left 34 stories behind for people to learn from and enjoy. She is an incredibly influential writer who died young and should be appreciated for the works of literature she gave us. O’Connor was an extraordinary character builder, and you can see that across many of her works. One character that was particularly impressive was Manley Pointer in “Good Country People”. Manley Pointer is nearly the dictionary definition of a sociopath. The dictionary definition of a sociopath is “a person with a personality disorder manifesting itself in extreme antisocial attitudes and behavior and a lack of conscience” (Oxford). Manley Pointer exhibits traits that would almost certainly diagnose him as a sociopath, and he uses these traits to do what he wants regardless of right or wrong. Manley Pointer is charismatic, very arrogant, and has a lack of empathy.

Manley Pointer’s most important character trait is his charisma because it enables everything that he does. Without charisma, Manley would be nothing, just an arrogant idiot. Manley Pointer was able to swine his way into the Hopewell’s home and then into a “relationship” with Hulga solely because of his charms and wit. In the story, Mrs. Hopewell states “he bored me to death but he was so sincere and genuine I couldn’t be rude to

him. He was just good country people, you know,” she said, —just the salt of the

earth” (O’Connor, 10). Manley’s charisma enables Manley to do almost anything he wants because even someone who is not very trustful such as Mrs. Hopewell trusted him  with only minor pushback. When you are charming and witty like Manley you have a pass to do almost anything that you want. Manley was especially successful in manipulating the Hopewell’s because of how different he was from them. In a review of the Flannery O’Connor stories, it is stated “both Joy/Hulga and her mother, Mrs. Hopewell, are taken in by the false bible salesman, Manley Pointer. His success is in large part due to the inability of either woman to use language in a non-representational way. Both speak and think almost entirely in cliches” (Thiemann). Manley’s charisma blinds the two women who see the world from a shallow perspective, and they cannot see through his facade. Charisma is an extremely powerful trait that can manipulate even the brightest people. As smart as Hulga is she falls straight into Manley’s trap because of his charisma and fake vulnerabilities. Manley Pointer is extremely charismatic and even though that is typically a positive character trait, on a sociopath like Manley Pointer it becomes very ugly and negative.

In addition, Manley Pointer is very arrogant. Unlike having charisma, being arrogant is disliked by anyone who comes across it. What is interesting about Manley Pointer’s arrogance is that it is hard to decipher until Manley’s true character is revealed. Since at the beginning of the story we see Manley Pointer the same way that Hulga and Mrs. Hopewell see him we do not know his true nature until it is revealed to Hulga. When this reveal happens, we as the reader realized his plans and how he made them happen. Manley believes that he is smarter than everybody else and he acts like it. If Hulga was not so caught up in her emotions she probably would have noticed the potential risks of meeting with him. Hulga’s arrogance blinded her from seeing Manley’s true nature and that is a remarkably interesting contrast created by O’Connor. Manley was able to deceive the Hopewell’s because of her arrogance in thinking that she could control a dumb country boy but in reality he was already manipulating her. In a review of the Flannery O’Connor stories, it is stated “Pointer’s uncanny knack for identifying himself with little known and intimate family secrets implies that he possesses an unearthly nature” (Edmondson III). His arrogance assists him in his efforts because when he identifies something, he holds complete confidence that he will be able to achieve his goal and that is what is demonstrated in “Good Country People”. We are shown that when his true nature is shown to Hulga, he is immediately disliked. If anybody were to get to know the true Manley Pointer, not a single person would like him. Manley Pointer is incredibly arrogant, but this arrogance helps him complete his goals. It is an unpleasant character trait to have but it is integral for his character.

Manley Pointer lacks empathy, and this becomes apparent as the story progresses. Empathy is the ability to understand and feel the emotions of others and Manley Pointer has zero. The crucial problem with Manley Pointer which makes there no redeeming him is that his entire plan is premeditated. Manley planned on taking her limb from the second that he found out about her and never questioned himself or doubted it for a second. He lacks the empathy necessary to do so and when he took Hulga’s limb he showed zero signs of regret and left Hulga stranded. Manley’s lack of empathy is shown before the reveal of his true nature when he is wooing Hulga in the barn. In a 1988 literary journal, it is stated that “For Manley, unlike Hulga, love is a fetishistic activity in which both partners temporarily please themselves. As a fetishist inflating the significance of the quirky, he is attracted to Hulga because she wears glasses and a wooden leg” (Burke). Manley feels no love, nor does he care if somebody loves him, he only cares for his own gain. Manley shows no regard for Hulga’s emotions and moved on when he was done with her in an instant. It can be assumed that when Manley walks away down the road with Hulga’s leg, he is on his way to exploit some other girl, some other family. Manley will move from girl to girl will zero thought because of his complete lack of empathy. Manley Pointer lacks empathy and will never feel guilt for his action and thus, will continue what he does until an outside force makes him stop.

Manley Pointer is an excellently crafted character by the remarkable writer Flannery O’Connor.  Manley Pointer is charismatic, very arrogant, and has a lack of empathy. He is a true sociopath and these various traits helped him achieve his objective. Manley’s charisma helped him manipulate the Hopewell’s into trusting him and eventually lead him to his goal. He is also very arrogant which allows him to commit 100% to his goals and paired with his charisma is an extremely dangerous combination. His lack of empathy allowed him to take Hulga’s limb without a second thought and he needed no empathy for him to plan to do so in the first place. Manley Pointer is a textbook sociopath, and the blend of his character traits creates a complex and interesting antagonist for the Good Country People story.