Based on the evidence in Patrick Shanley’s play, Doubt: A Parable, I conclude Father Flynn is guilty because of his desire to help boys and his ability to hide his past.
Father Flynn has a strange liking of boys. He is the basketball coach at the school and loves spending time teaching kids how to play basketball. Although he is suppose to be teaching the boys about basketball, He tends to boys how to be men. When talking to the boys Father Flynn says, “I’ve noticed several of you guys have dirty nails. I don’t want to see that.” (Shanley 17). Flynn had a weird obsession with how clean nails are. He told the boys that he had a friend when he was younger that had dirty nails and he died.
Father Flynn loved teaching all of his boys but he cared
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In the past 5 years, He has changed parishes 3 times. He never told anyone why he changed parishes so much. In one of his sermons he expresses that, “ I’m sick. No one knows I’ve lost my last real friend. I’ve done something wrong.” (Shanley 6). Father tells the congregation that he has done something wrong but he does not tell anyone what he did. This sermon is right before Sister James finds out about Flynn and Donald’s relationship. When Sister James and Sister Aloysius confront the situation to Father Flynn, He denies everything. He says, “It was a private matter.” (Shanley 32). After all the arguing, Father Flynn threatens Sister Aloysius and Sister James starts to believe Flynn.
A common argument against this position is that Father Flynn was really trying to help Donald be successful in school. Father Flynn may have been helping the only Negro in the school. Flynn says, “That back boy needs a helping hand or he’s not going to make it here!” (Shanley 40). Being the only black boy is hard in a big school so Flynn was going to give him advice. But when he comes back from getting advice, why does he smell like alcohol? Why does he put his head down on the desk like he’s done? Father Flynn was not helping him out, he was taking advantage of the only black kid in