Mary Flannery O'Connor was born March 25, 1925 in Savannah, Georgia to Edward Francis O'Connor Jr., a real estate agent, and Regina O'Connor,

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Cline. Both parents came from families that were prominent in Georgia's Catholic Church. In 1938 Mr O'Connor became ill with lupus erythematosis, a degenerative disease attacking the bones and immune system, for which there was no treatment at the time. He died in 1941, when Flannery was fifteen. She attended Peabody High School from 1938 to 1942. By this time she was already writing short books and submitting stories for publication, but she was also a serious cartoonist. She studied at Georgia State College for Women (now Georgia College) until 1945, beginning a course in English but then switching to social science.

In 1945 she earned a

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Citation: McGill, Robert. "Flannery O'Connor". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 08 November 2002 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=3373, accessed 19 March 2024.]

3373 Flannery O'Connor 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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