Self Preservation

"At that the old man stood up. "You act more like a Pitts than A fortune," he said. He had never made such an ugly remark to her before and he was sorry the instant he had said it. It hurt him more than it did her." (537)

There is much more to Flannery O'Connor's story A View of the Woods than a simple parable about a man outdone by his greed. At the core of O'Connor's main character, a self-centered octogenarian referred to as only Mr. Fortune, lies the basic human emotion of fear. Mr. Fortune would readily tell you that he does not fear progress and movement into the future as many people of his generation do. I will not argue that fact, but instead propose that it is fear of death that haunts the old man; perhaps even more so the fear of being forgotten. Mr. Fortune couldn't be less of a family man if he tried, only taking an interest in his granddaughter Mary Fortune. Mary just so happens to be the spitting image of her grandfather, both physically and intellectually. She is quick witted and strong willed, fearless and sturdy-minded. Throughout the story Mr. Fortune often comments on the similarities he sees between himself and his granddaughter, reflecting fondly on the likenesses. It is this borderline obsession with Fortune traits in his granddaughter that lead me to believe his invested interest stems from some idea of self-preservation. Mr. Fortune himself is afraid of the end, of the progress that will occur without him. This fear drives Mr. Fortune's actions. This fear is Mr. Fortune's fatal flaw. This fear of losing self leads to the death of both Mary Fortune when she became more Pitts than Fortune and Mr. Fortune himself.

Do you think that Mr. Fortune spelled out his own demise by living with fear and greed or do you think he was simply a victim of circumstance (his bad heart)?

Holy Woods

"On both sides of him he saw that the gaunt trees had thickened into mysterious dark files that were marching across the water and away into the distance. He looked around desperately for someone to help him but the place was deserted except for one huge yellow monster which sat to the side, as stationary as he was, gorging itself on clay"  (196/546).

In A View of the Woods, the woods are representative of a divine figure. O'Connor constantly changes the description of the woods to accurately match the moods of characters and the greedy actions of Mr. Fortune. The ever-changing "moods" of the woods acted as warning signs of Fortune's fate. It is at this moment (above) when the reader realizes that the woods are divine and Forutne's dark fate is revealed. Fortune, desperate for someone to help, was deserted by the woods (i.e., God) and left to the hell of his evil behavior.

Does Mr. Fortune feel that his actions are justified? Why or why not?

Dominance

The old man looked up into his own image. It was triumphant and hostile. "You been whipped," it said, "by me," and then it added, bearing down on each word, "and I'm PURE Pitts." (545)

"A View of the Woods" deals with power and submission as the grandfather tries to see his region progress. This is the first time in the story that Mary verbally identifies herself solely as a Pitts. It's a mirror image of her grandfather as he identifies himself as "PURE Fortune" (541) but also since Mary is the spitting image of her grandfather. The moment struck me as interesting because at this point in the story, Mary is dehumanized and referred to as "it." This technique leaves primal/animal instincts, which could be seen as "hostile." These instincts are an assertion of power, claiming one's superiority. Just as Mary must submit to her father, she makes her grandfather yield to her. "It" enjoys the power and dominant position it holds over the grandfather. Not only that, the last four words as O'Connor writes are an addition, and yet, they are deemed necessary. Mary has already physically exercises control over her  grandfather but takes it a step further to make sure he knows who she is. She identifies herself with her father, Pitts, the very person that the grandfather dislikes. This is a fatal blow to the grandfather who often identified and saw himself in the child. 

Why does O'Connor use Mary to assert Pitts's dominance?

Blocking the view

Old man Fortune was a man of excess, a man of progress, and a man of family, well to one person at least...Kind of...This visionary man dreamed big and altered his plans as the times advanced. He was on top of it, and he chose to leave his work under the supposedly trustful eyes of Mary Fortune. Even though she oscillates loyalty back and forth between her step-father and her grandfather. He saw himself so vividly in her, and she was that much more aware of what happened to her and how she responded and was supposed to respond. The bulldozer has captured her attention since the beginning of the story. The machine and the man became quite a spectacle, a focus of her every attention. It gave her an escape from Pitts' beatings, and her grandfather's constant attention. I think that the most memorable moment, besides the continuous and maturing bulldozer symbol, was the moment that occurred on pg. 532 of the course packet. This moment is especially noteworthy because of the title, it is clearly central to the story.  Mary Fortune starts off with her concern that "[they] wo[uld]n't be able to see the woods across the road". Her grandfather responds with disdain and anger about how the view means nothing, that it doesn't matter. That it is just another place. This is a defining moment in Mary's character, this was her breaking point. This was the beginning of the end.

Question for the class?

Do y'all think that the bulldozer symbolizes one aspect of the story in particular? If so what does it symbolize or what different things does the dozer symbolize?

Greed Greed Greed

The Moment: "He wanted to see a paved highway in front of his house with plenty of new-model cars on it, he wanted to see a supermarket store across the road from, he wanted to see a gas station, a motel, a drive-in picture show within easy distance...There was talk of an eventual town. He thought this should be called Fortune, Georiga."

In "A View of the Woods", O' Connor presents a rather nasty old man by the name of Mark Fortune who is in every sense of the word guilty of the sin of greed. He craves money and from the above moment, status and wealth. He is very uncharitable to even his own flesh and blood except that of the youngest daughter who is a younger female version of himself in appearance. Extending this view of him symbolizing Greed he "marks" plots  that will bring him money or "fortune" and irritate his son-in-law. As he extends this greed, the natural pure landscape around the home is destroyed and devoured and in a mark of pure malice he intends to sell the very lot in front of the home. However this original sin gets a hold of him fully by then and in the end he destroys the only earthly thing he actually cared for, his granddaughter only a child. In the fight the granddaughter could be seen as symbolic of pure wild nature trying to fight against that of the greedy force of the grandfather that is threatening the sanctuary of the landscape and the granddaughter's home.

Question: The author uses many symbols of religion in this story, what other examples are there? What else could Mary represent?

A Land on Fire

“…the gaunt trunks appeared to be raised in a pool of red light that gushed from the almost hidden sun setting behind them…He saw it, in his hallucination, as if someone were wounded behind the woods and the trees were bathed in blood.”

This moment occurs the third time Fortune takes a look at the woods. Laced with powerful sight imagery, the scene symbolizes the story’s greater message by casting a precautionary light on the dangers of rural development.

Situated in Georgia, the rural landscape is filled with vast pastures, farms and densely wooded areas. Development of the space has begun and no one is a bigger advocate for progress than Mr. Fortune. To his surprise, he discovers a firm resistance from his young companion Mary Fortune which is vocalized upon her discovery that Fortune intends to sell their lawn. Fortune holds a high disregard for preserving nature and would rather see it replaced with a more urban setting. What he defines as progress, the author demonstrates as mere destruction. O’Conner writes, “red light,” “wounded,” and “trees were bathed in blood” to describe the woods, the most definite symbol of nature in the story, to forewarn a devastating future that will occur should people continue to uproot the land for commercial ventures. Also, the author’s descriptions also evoke sight imagery preluding to death which is shown to be a consequence of disturbing the processes of nature.

Until his death Mr. Fortune held fast to his belief in “progress.” Should Mr. Fortune be considered a protagonist or antagonist in the story? Why or why not?