Narcissism and Spirituality in Flannery O'Connor's Stories

From: American Journal of Psychotherapy | Date: January 1, 2003| Author: | Copyright information

Virtually any short story by Flannery O'Connor could serve as a poignant case study of narcissism. While narcissism in the guises of ambition and hubris is an ancient literary theme, O'Connor's protagonists vividly exemplify a syndrome of covert and hypervigilant narcissism that has been well characterized in the literature. Her work also strongly implies that narcissism and spirituality (particularly Christianity) are antithetical, and two of her stories-"The Enduring Chill" and "The Lame Shall Enter First"-are analyzed with respect to this belief. The characters of Asbury and Sheppard ...

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