Analysis Of Mrs. Ruby Turpin In Flannery O Connor's Revelation

Some people may see themselves as a great person, but in reality, that is not what they are. An example of this can be found in a short story by Flannery O' Connor called "Revelation". The story is set in the south after the Civil War. The character, Mrs. Ruby Turpin, seems to be unaware of her personality until her moment of clarity in the pig parlor. At that moment, she is able to see past her narrow view and sees a glimpse into the afterlife. Before the pig parlor, she had this massive ego. O’ Connor emphasizes on how huge Mrs. Turpin was and that could possibly be a symbolism for how huge her ego really was. O’ Connor did so by saying, “… Mrs. Turpin, who was very large, made it look even smaller by her presence.” She is large, with bright black eyes, with good skin, and well dressed. Mrs. Turpin, from “Revelation” by Flannery O’Connor, has arrogant, judgmental, and bossy are her actual character traits then what she sees herself as.
Ruby Turpin sees herself as a very privileged person, but she is really just being arrogant. She sees herself as above the “White trash” and the “Negros”. She would occupy herself by trying to decide whom she

would have chosen to be if she could not be herself. She would beg Jesus to let her wait until there was another place available (432). She would choose to be a neat clean Negro woman; like herself but a different color (433). Next on how she is arrogant is at night she would occupy Mrs. Turpin by putting people in different classes. The bottom where most colored people that she would not be along with the white trash. Preceding that would be homeowners and then above would be home and land owners. Mrs. Turpin saw herself above the home and landowners. Lastly, she sees herself as a very blessed, little of everything woman. “[Jesus] had not made her a nigger or white trash or ugly! He had made herself and given her a little of everything [being high in society having a lot of money, being fat, and being a good woman](433). She sees herself as having a good disposition, that the Lord has blessed her with it (437). Mrs. Turpin actually has a bad disposition by her arrogance and many other bad traits.
Part of the bad disposition trait is how Judgmental Ruby Turpin is. She is judgmental by calling people who are poorly dressed, White trash. For example, she could tell by the way girl sat that she was white trash (432) Another example would be the girl’s mother was lank-faced, wearing a dirty yellow shirt with slippers. Mrs. Turpin considered this worse than black people. She sees this woman as a typical white trash by stating, “[…] exactly what you would have expected her to wear”(432). Following, She felt there was no place from any of the different classes of people. After she would put people into different people, she would dream that all the people were in a boxcar being ridden off to a gas oven (433). Finally, on how Ruby is judgmental, she still sees that "Negros" should work for her and pick cotton. She sees them as slaves by saying, “It is good weather for cotton if you can get the niggers to pick it”(434) She is tired of buttering up to them in order to get them to work. She wants to send them back to Africa (435). She does not want them to have equal rights as her, but at that time a lot of southerners did not want them to. With that being said, it does not change the fact that she is a very judgmental person.
Mrs.

Turpin also has a bossy character trait along with her arrogance and judgmental. She seems to be mainly bossy towards her husband named Claud. For example, when they first get to the doctor's office she tells him where to sit and pushed him down into it. O' Connor states, "[…] but he sat down as if he were accustomed to doing what she told him to do," making it clear that she frequently tells him what to do. Another example of this is Ruby saying, "Gimmie that hose. Go on and carry them, niggers, home and then get off that leg (442).” She was not only bossy to Claud but to the doctor when he was trying to take a look at her neck. For instance, she was saying angrily for him to let her be and to check on Claud. She likes to be in control and above all, which is why she bosses Claud around a lot, as well as the

doctor.
Mrs. Turpin, from “Revelation” by Flannery O’Connor, has arrogant, judgmental, and bossy are her actual character traits then what she sees herself as. In the end, Mrs. Turpin comes to some sort of realization. In her vision,
“They were marching behind the others with great dignity, accountable as they had always been for good order and common sense and respectable behavior. They alone were on key. Yet she could see by their shocked and altered faces that even their virtues were being burned away”(442).

This made her see that they are all equal and her attitude began to transition. Although O’Connor did not state how she changed, but one can assume that she did. One can see that Mrs. Turpin was no longer going to be arrogant towards people and her wealth. She was no longer going to be judgmental because she has now seen that they are all the same; God sees them all on the same level. Ruby is not going to be so control and bossy towards her husband because she knows that she does not have to be control of everything. Sometimes a book needs to be thrown at people in order for them to actually check themselves.