The Life You Save May Be Your Own Character Analysis

Although Flannery O’Connor’s short story, “The Life You Save May Be Your Own,” appears at first glance to be no more than a humorous tale, upon further examination it becomes obvious that the aptly-named Tom Shiftlet’s intrusion on the isolated Crater family serves some greater purpose. Characterized throughout the work in the likeness of Christ, Shiftlet’s presence as a male figure in the Crater household initially appears as a blessing, with Shiftlet contributing more to the family than anyone in the previous decade. However, this prospect soon falters, with Shiftlet’s opportunistic and manipulative nature proving dominant over his potentially redeeming qualities. Utilizing color imagery, biblical allusions, and pathetic fallacy, O’Connor

presents Shiftlet as an example of how a man’s depraved actions can result in the loss of a connection with a divine power and moral values, ultimately causing one to forego salvation.
Color imagery embodied in the descriptions of numerous characters serves to further define characters as being inherently virtuous or evil, setting the stage for future characterization. From the onset of the narrative, Lucynell is associated with blue, be it through her “blue organdy dress” or her “eyes as blue as a peacock’s neck” (O’Connor 224). Tom Shiftlet also is defined with a color, with his being various shades of black and gray, shown through his “gray hat,” “black town suit,” and “long black slick hair” (O’Connor 224). O’Connor immediately establishes each character’s affiliation with their respective color, intentionally doing so even before each character’s defining personality traits are revealed to the reader. Lucynell’s correlation to blue serves to portray her as innocent and divine, with blue being the color traditionally used to represent Virgin Mary in Christian artistic depictions. In stark contrast, black and gray, the colors used to characterize Tom Shiftlet, have historically been classified with death and a lack of spirituality. In this sense, O’Connor creates Lucynell as a foil to Shiftlet. Although Shiftlet is spiritually deprived at the beginning of the narrative, Lucynell’s abundance of purity and innocence serves as an opportunity for him to redeem himself and ultimately achieve salvation.
The biblical allusions painting Shiftlet as an incarnation of Christ aim to represent him as one of Christ’s children, showing that he holds an initial chance at upholding divine moral values and obtaining salvation.

Despite Shiftlet being initially characterized as lacking spirituality and being inheritably evil through the color imagery associated with him, O’Connor clearly conveys to the reader that Shiftlet can still be redeemed. He is cast in the likeness of Christ repeatedly, first when forming a “crooked cross” with his body and the sunset when originally approaching the Crater household (O’Connor 224). O’Connor continues this association, next with Shiftlet being revelated as a “carpenter,” the same occupation as Christ, and lastly with Shiftlet reviving the Crater family’s car, described as him having “raised the dead,” mirroring Christ’s resurrection of Lazarus (O’Connor 225, 227). O’Connor paints Shiftlet in the likeness of Christ, however a clear distinction is made to show that, while similar, Shiftlet is not meant to be interpreted as an incarnation of Christ. Shiftlet lacks spirituality and is overly obsessed with materialistic possessions like the Crater’s car, traits not common to Christ. Their similarities instead showcase Shiftlet’s striking resemblance to Christ, classifying him as one of Christ’s children. Regardless of his lack of a divine connection, Shiftlet originates from Christ, and therefore can redeem himself. O’Connor asserts this likeness to show that, until Shiftlet truly does something depraved, he has not lost his chance at obtaining

salvation.
Pathetic fallacy, utilized by O’Connor in her manipulation of the weather throughout the narrative, showcases Shiftlet’s degrading relationship with a divine power and morality, eventually indicating that Shiftlet has reached a point where he has lost any chance at redemption. When Shiftlet first stumbles upon the Crater household, the weather is superb, with the sunset being so beautiful that he even stops to observe it for “almost fifty seconds” (O’Connor 224). At this point, Shiftlet has committed no major acts of evil, and therefore still is welcomed by some divine power, presumably God, represented through the exceptional weather. As Shiftlet begins to work with Lucynell, teaching her words and spending time with her, the weather continues to be favorable, with the sky being described as “dark blue” and “pale blue” on two separate occasions (O’Connor 227, 229). However, as Shiftlet beings to act nefarious the weather begins to shift rapidly. As he leaves Lucynell at the diner, a “storm” starts brewing over him, yet no “thunder” is present (O’Connor 230). Shiftlet’s chance at salvation is quickly deteriorating here, however has not been eliminated entirely, with him still having the opportunity to retrieve Lucynell from the diner and act as if this incident never occurred. As he drives away, the weather progressively gets worse, as “guffawing peal[s] of thunder” and “fantastic raindrops” being to crash over the rear of Shiftlet’s car (O’Connor 231). Shiftlet, instead of acting morally responsible and returning for Lucynell, chooses to continue running from the storm, and ultimately continue running from God. It is here where Shiftlet forgoes any chance at salvation, making the deliberate choice to alternately live a life lacking a divine connection and a sense of morality.
O’Connor, through her use of color imagery, biblical allusions, and pathetic fallacy when characterizing Tom Shiftlet, shows how intentionally sinful acts can cause one to lack morality and salvation. O’Connor aims to have her audience interpret this message and reach the realization that continued immoral practices can jeopardize not only one’s eternal afterlife but can also lead to consequences in this lifetime. Shiftlet’s future at the end of the narrative is bleak, and this serves to be representative of all people who commit lewd acts to attempt to increase their overall quality of life. O’Connor hopes that her message will resonate, leading her audience to accept general Christian moral values and America improving as a result.