Looks and clothing matter in "Everything That Rises Must Converge." It's a world in which if you don't wear a tie you look like a "thug," and if you've got a briefcase then you must be respectable. Every character has a distinguishing feature or item of clothing,a hat, protruding teeth, or red shoes. And when we're introduced to the characters, we, along with Julian, make assumptions.
This idea of
making judgments is powerful because it makes us think: why do we wear
what we wear? Why do other people where what they wear? What do you
think when you see someone dressed in overalls versus someone dressed in
a tuxedo?
Sure, making judgments is just part of the tools we
use to get through life. If you had to get to know everyone on your
daily bus commute, you'd never make it to work. But O'Connor wants us
to think deeper: what can we really know about a person or a literary
character from their red shoes?
