The Pruning Word The Parables of Flannery O'Connor

In this volume the author maintains that Flannery O'Connor strongly melded her art and her religious beliefs in her writings, to the point that these two aspects were inseparable and can never exclusive from one another. The author recognizes that O'Connor, like Jesus, conveys her themes through stories that illustrate moral or religious lessons that force readers to take a fresh look at their world because it makes reality live for them in a new way. He proposes that, as a result, her readers not only read her work but participate in it as well. The author feels that readers extract -- from scenes of ordinary life in her fiction -- meaning and wisdom relevant to their "universal human existence." He offers examples that demonstrate opportunities for readers to participate in O'Connor's depiction of reality