The Gentle Murderer in the Greenleaf Bull

 

                There is a lot that I don’t know what to make of in Flannery O’Connor’s “Greenleaf,” but I kept returning to the idea that the Greenleaf bull is gentle. When Mrs. May first sees the bull she says “get away from here, Sir!” (O’Connor 311). Despite the fact that Mrs. May wants the bull killed she refers to the bull with polite terms multiple times, and though this may be Mrs. May’s way of mocking the bull, it doesn’t change the fact that the bull is addressed politely throughout the story. Both Mr. Greenleaf and Mrs. May speak of the bull – even as they are about to kill him – as if he were a guest who has come to dinner. Mrs. May tells Mr. Greenleaf “the gentleman is waiting for you,” and Mrs. May imagines Mr. Greenleaf saying “If you can find that gentleman in them woods, you’re better than me” (O’Connor 331 & 332). The polite way Mrs. May and Mr. Greenleaf refer to the bull insinuates a respect that I did not expect these characters to have for an escaped bull.

As the bull kills Mrs. May his horn "curved around her side and held her in an unbreakable grip," reminding me of a hug (O'Connor 333). While thinking about the bull’s gentle manner as he stabs Mrs. May through the heart, I began to wonder if Mrs. May’s death was a punishment or a gift. Mrs. May’s sons torment her throughout the story. Though Mrs. May’s clear prejudice and judgement throughout the story can not be excused, I would argue that she does not deserve her sons’ harsh treatment. Because the bull’s actions as he murders Mrs. May are depicted as gentle, it seems that the murder may be a gift to Mrs. May, who must live with her sons who find joy in her torment. Although the description of Mrs. May having her sight restored only to find “the light unbearable,” seems to suggest that through her death Mrs. May has seen her own faults, which would imply that her death is a judgement for her own prejudiced behavior.

                As I tried to interpret the bull’s actions, I thought about Mrs. Greenleaf saying “Oh Jesus, stab me in the heart!” while she is praying, and I wondered if O’Connor is telling her readers that the bull is equivalent to Jesus (O’Connor 317). Based on the previous stories I have read by O’Connor, I would have assumed that the bull was Jesus passing judgement on Mrs. May for her own judgment of the Greenleafs and her disbelief in God. But if the bull’s actions are a judgement, then why is the bull compared to a “tormented lover” as he kills Mrs. May (O’Connor 333)?

                If the bull is comparable to Jesus, then the bull’s actions could be a symbol of Jesus loving all people despite the sins they have committed, or the bull’s actions could show that in taking Mrs. May from the Earth, he does her a kindness. I won’t pretend to know exactly what Flannery O’Connor was thinking when she wrote “Greenleaf,” but religious symbolism is frequently present in O’Connor’s stories, and I would argue that the bull is a symbolism of O’Connor’s idea of a loving but wrathful God.