The Geranium by Flannery O'Connor

In this story, despite bare bones action, O'Connor paints a complete picture of an old confused man whose values and prejudices are still intact. His friendship with Rabie and Lutish, with whom he spent most of his time in the country is directly contrasted with his fear and loathing of the black man who lives next door in the apartment building. O'Connor uses a lot of narrative memory to describe his past life while he sits and waits for the geranium to appear in the window. What changes for the character after his meeting in the hallway is that he realizes that the power structure has changed. The black man sees him as old and confused, and Rabie treated him like the boss. He finds himself in a world he doesn't understand, and he cannot face it. He would rather sit in his chair without the one thing he enjoyed-- looking at the geranium-- than risk having the black man touch him, or help him or talk to him.