It could be said that Mr. Shiftlet represents the male population in the fact that he is freer to move and has no restrictions. The Craters are the female population of that time because they are more tied to the place where they are and responsible for household chores. The automobile represented the era of mobilization and growth of technology. A critique by Mark G. Edelstein touches on the theme of modern satire in O'Conner's work. He states that "O' Conner satirizes both the perversity of man and his perversion" (Milne, 139) which only means that his writing style is like that of a satirist; his techniques of sarcasm and symbolism are used to criticize man's ways and gender