Don’t Hug Good Country People ~Ashlyn Scism

    I absolutely adore Flannery O’ Conner and her writing style. She is an excellent example of the southern gothic genre. Like most classic gothic writers O’Conner paved the way for modern horror. O’Conner employs the tool of subverting the readers’ expectations in her stories. First, she sets up your expectation for the tone of the story by titling it with something positive or upbeat such as Good Country People and A Good Man is Hard to Find. Then when the people read the story they discover it is different than what they initially expected. Then towards the middle or end of the tale, there is a big twist. The twist is usually negative or dark. This has become a common literary tool used by mystery/horror/thriller writers. 

There is a web series on YouTube that started in 2011 called Don’t Hug Me. I’m Scared. (DHMIS) Created and directed by Joseph Pelling and Becky Sloan. If you knew nothing more than the title of the videos then you might assume it is a sweet children's series. In fact, when you start a video it looks kid-friendly with puppets, props made of felt, and music. However, if you watch the whole thing there is a turning point in every video. The music goes haywire and the visuals get bizarre, gory, and somewhat disturbing. DHMIS falls into the horror/comedy genre. 

Both O’Conner and DHMIS subvert the audience’s expectations. Their stories appear to be lighthearted when in reality they are fairly dark. Personally, this trope is part of what drew me to horror as a genre. I like the idea of intentionally misleading the audience by using wholesome ideas to convey darker themes.


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  1. Emmett BryantMarch 28, 2022 at 7:50 PM

    I like that you pointed out the twists and surprises O'Connor puts in her stories. I have never read much from her before or just did not recognize her name because the way this story started out, I most definitely thought it was going to be some positive story that ended in a cute little lesson or ideal. Nope. Not really. Slowly I began to realize just what O'Connor was trying to do and I thought it was brilliant. --Emmett Bryant

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  2. Emily OttsMarch 28, 2022 at 9:13 PM

    O' Connor definitely makes good plot twists in making the story become something so horrifying that you did not think was possible. When you have never read any of her works before, that twist really gets you, as it did me when reading "A Good Man is Hard to Find". She does a good job setting up the plot twist by hinting at it, but also making it so intense, you are surprised when you read it.

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  3. Bug OlsenMarch 28, 2022 at 9:50 PM

    I enjoyed your post, and I also find these types of writings slightly comical. Some works are certainly more disturbing, but the works by O'Connor were funny to me in places much like the irony behind DHMIS. The ignorance of characters and their downfall because of it was humorous to me, much like the bizarreness of DHMIS is captivating on some level (while also terrifying).

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