Tubbe 1

Lexi Tubbe
Mr. Opachan
English III
20 May 2016
Disabilities Told Through a Writers Perception
Did you ever wonder what it was like to grow up with a disability in the south before the
civil rights movement? Carson McCullers grew up in the early nineteen hundreds with a
physical (deleted word) disorder that made her disabled because she was paralyzed on the right
side of her body. She (deleted words) creates two mute characters for her book, The Heart Is A
Lonely Hunter. She made a connection to her personal life by creating two characters who are
(deleted words) living in the south during the 1930s with a disability (deleted words) such as she
did when she was younger. (Deleted Words) She (deleted words) explains (deleted word) how
race problems were not going on during that time are getting out of control as the years progress.
Some people say that the movie was a real tear gusher; however, there is no doubt in their
mind that the book could not be topped (Sarris 42). In Carson McCullers book, The Heart Is A
Lonely Hunter, she gives a great amount of imagery that helps support her observation on how
people lived in the south before the civil rights movement.
In Carson McCullers book, The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter, she connects the two main
characters to her life by giving them a physical disability. The two main characters are
connected to the major theme of the book in one quote mans revolt against his own inner
isolation and his urge to express himself as fully as possible(Champion 47). The two characters
were known throughout the book as Antonapoulos and Singer, they are both mute. Carson
McCullers was paralyzed by two strokes in one year. The first stroke made her go blind in her

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right eye and the second one paralyzed an entire side of her body (Unger 587). She used that
horrific tragedy to be the support of her writing process for a lot of her books. Even though the
disabilities between her and the two main characters are not similar, it still helps build a great
story line for what life was like (deleted words) in the 1930s in the south. In The Heart Is A
Lonely Hunter, the changes in the characters lives fit together like pieces of a puzzle that come
together to portray Southern Society at the end of the Depression (Millichap 12). The
characters demonstrate a good example of self expression and revolt for what is right by
speaking their minds. She stands up for the racism that went on in other parts of the United
States when she was younger (deleted words) without actually having speaking characters.
Carson McCullers book does not offend any African Americans. During the early
southern (deleted word) time there was a large racial population. Carson McCullers can compare
because during her life she lived in a small town with a lot of African Americans (Unger 589).
She had met tons of wonderful African Americans in Atlanta, Georgia. As mentioned in her
book, The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter, the African American population in the town was very
nicely dressed for special occasions (McCullers 57). They were taught at a very young age to
dress in a well mannered way whenever they show themselves in public; it was a polite way to
dress. There was an African American doctor called Doctor Copeland (141). He was the number
one doctor in town that everyone went to. There were no problems between the whites and
African Americans talking with each other. They were always hanging out together at the big
events.
The south had a big influence on her writings and thoughts that came together to make
The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter. She also used all of her life experiences to help define the story
better (George 101). Carson loved to fit the different scenarios that happened in her life into her

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writings. When Carson became paralyzed, all she could think about when she got out of the
hospital was what she can use this incident to write about. In the book it was usually a nice day
outside; there were always beautiful days in her life (McCullers 154). Her dad always made her
a homemade breakfast, just like Hazels dad did every morning (266). Its always nice to be able
to wake up to a home cooked meal in the morning. Carson believed that in order to have a great
morning, you have to be fueled for the day (Lenviel 119). Everyone should make time to enjoy a
meal with their family at least once a day.
Carson McCullers main idea of the book The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter is that no matter
where you come from or what you were born with, everyone is special. There may be times
when we think that someone is more worthy than we are but the truth is, we are all remarkable in
our own way. We see that even though Mick and Hazel may get into fights every once in a
while, they will always have that breakfast together every morning (McCullers 267).

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Work Cited
Champion, Laurie. Black and White Christs in Carson Mccullers's "the Heart Is a Lonely
Hunter". The Southern Literary Journal 24.1 (1991): 4752. Web
George, Courtney. "Introduction: Carson Mccullers And Influence." Anq 26.2 (2013): 100-102.
Academic Search Elite. Web. 22 Mar. 2016.
Lenviel, Claire. "Hopeless Resistance: The Self-Look In Mccullers's The Heart Is A Lonely
Hunter." Anq 26.2 (2013): 115-120. Academic Search Elite. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.
McCullers, Carson. The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter. New York: First Mariner Books, 2000. Print.
Millichap, Joseph R.. The Realistic Structure of "the Heart Is a Lonely Hunter". Twentieth
Century Literature 17.1 (1971): 1117. Web...
Sarris, Andrew. "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter." Film Comment 27.1 (1991): 42.
Unger, Leonard. American Writers: A Collection of Literary Biographies, ed. New York: Charles
Scribners Sons. 1974. Print.

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Work Consulted
Carr, Virginia Spencer. The Lonely Hunter: A Biography of Carson McCullers. Athens: U of
Georgia, 2003. Print.
Champion, Laurie. Black and White Christs in Carson Mccullers's "the Heart Is a Lonely
Hunter". The Southern Literary Journal 24.1 (1991): 4752. Web
George, Courtney. "Introduction: Carson Mccullers And Influence." Anq 26.2 (2013): 100-102.
Academic Search Elite. Web. 22 Mar. 2016.
GONZLEZ GROBA, CONSTANTE. "So Far As I And My People Are Concerned The South
Is Fascist Now And Always Has Been": Carson Mccullers And The Racial
Problem."

Atlantis (0210-6124) 37.2 (2015): 63-80. Academic Search Elite. Web. 22 Mar.

2016.
Lenviel, Claire. "Hopeless Resistance: The Self-Look In Mccullers's The Heart Is A Lonely
Hunter." Anq 26.2 (2013): 115-120. Academic Search Elite. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.
Magill, Frank N. Great Women Writers: The Lives and Works of 135 of the Worlds Most
Important Women Writers, from Antiquity to the Present. New York: Holt, 1994.
Print.
McCullers, Carson. The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter. New York: First Mariner Books, 2000. Print.
Millichap, Joseph R.. The Realistic Structure of "the Heart Is a Lonely Hunter". Twentieth
Century Literature 17.1 (1971): 1117. Web...
Rich, Nancy B.. The "ironic Parable of Fascism" in "the Heart Is a Lonely Hunter". The
Southern Literary Journal 9.2 (1977): 108123. Web...

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Sarris, Andrew. "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter." Film Comment 27.1 (1991): 42.
Unger, Leonard. American Writers: A Collection of Literary Biographies, ed. New York: Charles
Scribners Sons. 1974. Print.