Life You Safe May Be Your Own Essay

People are different no matter where they come from; it’s the society that brings in change. Peace is something people look for, but when it comes to power it changes everything to violence. Humanity is cruel and unique in many different ways to make things change, that affects many from time when, its need of helping others. In the story “The Life You Safe May Be Your Own”, by Flanner O’Conner, as the story begins, and old woman and her thirty-year-old, mentally handicapped daughter, are sitting on their porch. Tom Shiftlet, a wandering one-armed man, becomes known with Lucynell Crater. That night, the Lucynell Crater makes her offer of her daughter as a wife to Tom Shiftlet but he says “he cannot get married because he has no money”. Then
Her mother suggests that he teach her to say, "sugarpie," and it is obvious that she hopes they will get married. The elder Lucynell Crater asks if he is single or married, and though he doesn't answer the question, he indicates that he is unmarried because he cannot find a woman innocent enough. Then he decides that he is going to make the old car run again, and the elder Lucynell agrees to give him the money he needs to fix it. Tom Shiftlet was able to fix and run the old car once again, and drives it out of the garage. That night, the elder Lucynell Crater makes an offer of her daughter as a wife to Tom Shiftlet. At first, Tom Shiftlet says he cannot get married because he has no money. But she argues and says her “daughter doesn't know the difference”, and says that she will pay to paint the car by Saturday so that they can drive to the courthouse and get married. She also offers to give him money for the honeymoon, and he is convinced with what’s Lucynell Crater offers. This shows how much courage power Lucynell Crater has towards Tom Shiftlet to be able to find peace in her daughters’ life, although both are innocent in their point of