The short story “A Good Man Is Hard To Find” theme revolves around the grandmother convoluted depiction of a good man. The story starts off by introducing us to a family consisting of a son, and daughter whose temperament are an embodiment of modern raising. Where their behavior and action are deemed questionable in the grandmother’s opinion as she states when she was younger she showed respect. The story also introduces the mother and father of the two kids, and a baby. The final part of the family consists of a grandmother who believes that there is a lack of good men in today’s society. The family were going on a trip to Florida to which the grandmother pointed out an important dilemma. A criminal has escaped and was loose around their intended destination. This however covered her true intent …show more content…
He has named himself the misfit due to the fact he was never capable of weighing his punishment against the crime he committed. The family comes face to face with the misfit after getting into an accident caused by them venturing off to see a plantation. That the grandmother believed was in Georgia but in fact located in Tennessee. The misfit proceeds to delegate to his two partners which family members will proceed to the woods and meet their end. The misfit indeed does not fit the ideals stated to be a good man. He has no money and currently isn’t sporting a shirt, and states he has no needs for items. The grandmother insist that he is a good man due to the fact that he looks like he didn’t come from common blood, then that he had a good heart. Which only in turn dilutes her depiction for a Goodman. In an attempt to butter up the criminal so her family could escape. Yet to no avail she then tries to state he can still be forgiving if he prayed, but even this does not assist. Her futile attempt fall on deaf ears as she meets her
In Flannery O’Conner’s, “A Good Man is Hard to Find” the story begins with the family going on a road trip to Florida. The Grandmother who is very critical, selfish, judgmental, forgetful, and dishonest and almost enjoys manipulating others to get her way. The Grandmother holds herself in very high regard and
A murderer was in the family’s presence. The grandmother was begging for grace from the misfit in every way possible. The character of the selfish grandmother, in Flannery O’Connor’s short story, “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” tries to use her manipulative ways to fight the Misfit’s urge to kill her. She is unrelenting in her actions to control those around her. Grandmother portrays a stubborn, devious character who wants what she wants and is going to see that she gets it.
“A Good Man is Hard to Find,” written by Flannery O'Connor tells a story of a dysfunctional family on a roadtrip to Florida to illustrate the theme of self-awareness. The main protagonist in this story is the self-centered Grandmother whose lack of self-awareness is the reason why her family, including herself, are murdered by The Misfit (the Floridian convict). Throughout the story, the Grandmother considers herself as a good woman; however, it is through dialogue that reveals her true self. In reality, she is selfish, manipulative, inconsiderate, and dishonest. No matter how much she attempts to manipulate others into thinking she is full of integrity and a good example to follow, her actions contradict everything she wants people to believe.
The grandmother character in A Good Man is Hard to Find is the Christian icon of the story, while the Misfit represents all that is evil. True to her southern roots, ...
In the short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, Flannery O’Connor shows the dynamics of a 1950’s family, hypocrisy and finally grace. In the story, the family is taking a vacation by driving to Florida. The grandmother, who is one of the central characters, convinces her son to take a side trip to visit an old plantation that she had seen in her youth. Only she misremembered about the plantation and it wasn’t there at all. On the way, the family has an accident and their car ends up in a ditch. This is where the family meets The Misfit. This story is a Southern Gothic, that has damaged characters who meet a violent end.
As I read Flannery O’Connor’s short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, I find myself being completely consumed by the rich tale that the author weaves; a tragic and ironic tale that concisely and precisely utilizes irony and foreshadowing with expert skill. As the story progresses, it is readily apparent that the story will end in a tragic and predictable state due to the devices which O’Connor expertly employs and thusly, I find that I cannot stop reading it; the plot grows thicker with every sentence and by doing so, the characters within the story are infinitely real in my mind’s eye. As I consider these factors, the story focuses on two main characters; that of the grandmother, who comes across as self-centered and self-serving and The Misfit, a man, who quite ingeniously, also appears to be self-centered and self-serving. It is the story behind the grandmother, however, that evidence appears to demonstrate the extreme differences between her superficial self and the true character of her persona; as the story unfolds, and proof of my thought process becomes apparently clear.
Regardless of the grandmother’s attempt to reason with him by praying, he has a profound concept of Jesus. He tells the grandmother about his anger and lack of faith towards Jesus. As the Misfit compares himself to Jesus, the Misfit seems upset because they have “papers” on him and not on Jesus (O 'Connor 151). Even though the Misfit is a cold blooded murderer, he is interpreted as a wise man who is almost superior to the others. The Misfit is taking on the role of God when he chooses to make his call and kill the family. Not only does he make a decision for the family to die, but he also judges the grandmother: “She would of been a good woman, if it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life" (O’Connor 153). In this case, the Misfit does not believe the grandmother is a “good” woman considering her beliefs. However, when she was in a life and death situation, she embraced her faith in
“A Good Man is Hard to Find” written by Flannery O’Connor is a short story about a family who is taking a trip to Florida and is killed by the Misfit and his crew after an accident. As the story begins, the grandmother is seen by the reader as the protagonist, but as the story progresses the grandmother shows her true colors and is seen as the antagonist. The grandmother was a manipulative, dishonest and selfish person who lead herself and her family to their death. The fact that this woman was willing to use manipulation to get what she wants; she shows her self-interest and her little concern for anyone else but herself throughout the short story. The grandmother is the cause of the accident that lead to her family’s death. She is the one who had the idea to go to the plantation, which she lies about in order to go, takes the family down the wrong trail and startles the cat who jumps on Bailey who is driving which causes the accident. The grandmother in O’Connor’s story takes on the monstrous characteristics of manipulation, dishonesty, selfishness, and being a lady so that she can make life go the exact way she wants it.
“A Good man is hard to find,” is about a family who decide to go on a trip to Florida. The story revolves around a self absorbed grandmother who loves to talk about how everything used to be back in her day and takes the time to dress herself so that “In case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once that she was a lady (358).” She sneaks the family cat with her despite her son’s disapproval of bringing the creature along violating her boundaries to how a lady would act. The family encounters an accident along the way and happens to come across ‘The Misfit,’ a runaway criminal. Using ‘The Misfit’ as a tool, O’ Connor sends a message to her readers of how hypocritical a person can be when it comes to belief.
Elmore Leonard once said “I don’t judge in my books. I don’t have the antagonist get shot or the protagonist win. It’s just how it comes out. I’m just telling a story.” “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”, written by Flannery O'Connor, is one of the most interesting stories that we have read in this class. The protagonist in this story is the grandmother and the antagonist is The Misfit. In any other short story, the protagonist and the antagonist would not have much in common, but that is not the case in “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”. The three major similarities between the grandmother and The Misfit is that they are both the oldest one in their groups, they are both hypocrites, and they both are missing important spiritual relationships.
In the short story, 'A Good Man is Hard to Find', the main character is the grandmother. Flannery O'Connor, the author, lets the reader find out who the grandmother is by her conversations and reactions to the other characters in the story. The grandmother is the most important character in the story because she has a main role in the stories principal action. This little old lady is the protagonist in this piece. We learn more about her from her direct conversation with the son, Bailey, her grandchildren, June Star and John Wesley, and the Misfit killer. Through these conversations, we know that she is a lady raised from a traditional background. In the story, her attitude changes more than once to accommodate the surroundings that she is in. With the data provided, we can tell that the grandmother goes from not wanting to go to Florida, to anxious to go, and in the end, I felt as if she went off the deep end. All of the sudden, the only thing she really concentrates on is Jesus and her not being killed.
Lessons are learned through mistakes and experiences, but to completely understand the lesson, a person must be smart enough to profit from their errors and be strong enough to correct them. However, this was not the case for the main character in the short story; A Good Man is Hard to Find written by Flannery O’Connor. In this tale of manipulation and deception, O’Connor depicts the main character, the grandmother, as a shrewd self-centered woman, who considers herself morally superior than the other individuals. Throughout the entire story, she is seen using her manipulative tactics on everyone, which brought her to a sinister ending. O’Connor expertly portrayed the grandmother as a character that did not correct her negative characteristics throughout the story. To prove this statement, the use of time will be applied to help focus on the main idea of the grandmother not changing her deleterious ways throughout this story.
Pride is encouraged in some and hated in others. Pride in elderly people is excused because they are considered wise. In “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor, the grandmother’s pride . The grandmother enters the story trying and failing to take control of the choice of where the family should go on vacation. She is very concerned about appearances in public but allows herself to be rude in private. The grandmother manipulates those around her to get what she wants. The Misfit does not know her or much about her, but he understands her character. The grandmother assumes everyone is inferior to her.
“A Good Man Is Hard To Find” by Flannery O’Connor explores the complexity of human nature. The unnamed grandmother is a perfect example of how contradictory a person’s beliefs and standards can be. She is indirectly manipulative, yet she holds herself to a higher, purer standard than the other characters. Not to mention, the grandmother is not as she first appear, and she is stuck on the views of the past and how they apply to her as a lady, whether the views are correct or not.
The Misfit is the complete opposite of a typical hero, or “Good Man”, but he is honest, he is true to himself, and he knows that he is not good. When the Grandmother and the Misfit are talking, the Misfit is very mannerly towards the family he even apologizes towards the family: “I’m sorry I don’t have on a shirt before you ladies” (Ochshorn). The Misfit never lies about who he really is. He knows that he is not a good man, and he does not try to be something he is unable to be. The Grandmother is the complete opposite, she truly believes that she is good and lies to herself and everyone around her so she will be accepted. The Grandmother says to the Misfit, “I just know you’re a good man. You’re not a bit common” (O’Connor), to which he replies, “Nome, I ain’t a good man, but I ain’t the worst neither” (O’Connor). It is refreshing to see someone admit and know that they are not good, and that they will never be