Flannery O’Connor and Group Sex: A Primer in Neither

I’m reading a collection of Flannery O’Connor’s lectures and essays called Mystery and Manners. In “The Nature and Aim of Fiction,” O’Connor uses the structure of Caroline Gordon’s short story “Summer Dust,” as an example of how seemingly unrelated parts are in fact quite related.

I mention this not to give a lecture on short story writing, but to point out two things: One, I have never heard of Caroline Gordon; and two, I find I need to seek out her work. Why is this? It partly has to do with a need to read a variety of authors and partly because Gordon, by mere mention in an essay, has been given Flannery O’Connor’s imprimatur–at least to my satisfaction. Whether Gordon is worth a damn remains to be seen.

I’m a novice reader, and I try to come upon new writers and novels any way I can. By novice I mean to say that I came to reading late, that I never read as a child, and thus never properly evolved to find writers on my own, or to even know what the hell I liked. Because of this I’m easily influenced by the suggestions of peers and heroes. If I stumble upon someone I find interesting reading an author I’ve never heard of, I’m likely to investigate and seek out that author. I find the randomness suits me, and keeps me from spending all my time in Yoknapatawpha¹ County and places thereabout.

Until a few days ago, I never considered myself a fan of Flannery O’Connor. Why this is I can’t quite put my finger on, but it had something to do with how she ends many of her stories and my prejudices toward how stories should be written. The change of heart came from a re-reading of Everything that Rises Must Converge and my own need to wipe the slate clean and unlearn everything I thought I knew about writing short stories. I can’t explain yet why I now consider myself a fan, but I’ve decided to read this year everything she’s written. She died young and does not have a large body of work, so it should not be as daunting as The Faulkner Project. I’m also going to be reading The Collected Stories of Caroline Gordon, and I’m looking forward to it.

In my research I found another Caroline Gordon, and this Caroline Gordon seems to be an expert on group sex, writing timeless classics such as The Beginner’s Guide to Group Sex: Who Does What to Whom and How. At least I believe it to be a different Caroline Gordon. To be honest, there’s a part of me that wishes they were the same person. What would it say about Flannery O’Connor? Academics would have a field day analyzing the implications.

¹I had to search “Yoknapatawpha” to make sure I spelled it correctly. That’s how long it’s been since I’ve worked on The Faulkner Project.