Prodigal Son/ Reasonable Use Of The Unreasonable
Summary and Analysis: The ?Prodigal Son? paralleled to O?Connors ?Reasonable Use of the Unreasonable?
The ?Prodigal Son?, can be paralleled to Flannery O?Connor?s ?A Reasonable use of the Unreasonable,? because of the communal use of exaggeration to shock a secular culture into hearing and comprehending Christian ideas and beliefs. In both of these stories exaggeration is used in a nearly grotesque manner to stress important religious principles. Although the circumstances observed are clearly unreasonable, reasonableness becomes apparent when analyzed on the Divine level.
The ?Prodigal Son? is a story of two brothers who are given money by their father, who on an allegorical level can be represented as God. The younger son, representative of publicans and sinners, moves away and squanders his inheritance. He uses it for immoral purposes and eventually finds himself in despair. At nadir, he is forced to eat with swine. This is particularly immoral, and contradicts Christian beliefs. The elder son, who can be seen as a representation for pharmacies and scribes, stays by his father?s side. He tends to the land and acts as a responsible human being. He is nothing but loyal and obedient to his father?s will.
When the younger son
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