A Good Man Is Hard To Find Misfit Character Analysis

Everyone is guilty of something but few realize it. In a Good Man is Hard to Find, there are two main characters who display character traits that are extremely disturbing and hard to comprehend. The setting of this story does influence some of their actions in a negative way. Because of their behaviors the tone of this story tries to take on a sense of humor to offset their shocking actions. Using irony within the story, many characters are guilty of wrongdoings but they do not see what they are doing as wrong. Therefore, it is very difficult to find any good character within this story.
The grandmother preserves many different attributes and behaviors that she doesn't understand are not good. She changes her plans for a family trip and

decides to go to Tennessee instead of Florida. The family ended up not avoiding the misfit they met up with him after their car crashes. The grandmother didn’t want to go to Florida she says, “This fellow calls himself the Misfit is aloose from the Federal Pen and headed toward Florida and you read here what it says he did to these people” (O’Connor 24). The family ends up going to Tennessee. This shows that the grandma didn't really avoid the Misfit because in the end of the story they met up with the Misfit and he ends up killing the whole family. The grandma never admits that she was wrong on going to Tennesse than Florida. In fact, she barely says anything when the Misfit’s servant take her family away from her. Any loving, grandma would put her own life on the line to save her son and grandchildren. She only cares about herself. Another problem the grandmother has is she has bad judgement. She is a really judgemental person and sometimes she’s not always accurate. Clark explains that “The grandmother's judgement of others is totally twisted. She pronounces Red Sammy Butts (the owner of a BBQ joint) a good man despite the evidence that he is a lazy slob who treats his wife like a slob” (112). This shows that the grandmother proclaimed that Red Sammy Butts is a good man but the truth is he is not. He treats his wife improperly which isn’t a sign of a good man. The grandma doesn't realize or understand the terrible things he does to his wife. Also, she doesn't get how to judge people. There was obvious evidence that Red Sammy was a bad man but she did not look at that. The grandmother is a really hard person to understand due to her various ways of handling things and her persona.
In addition, the Misfit deals with many hardships throughout his life that contributes to his actions.

He does not realize killing people is bad. The Misfit’s mind is in a lot of different places at the moment he talks with the grandma. For example he says , “Because I can’t make what all I done wrong fit what all I gone through in punishment” (O’Connor 39). This shows that the Misfit has gone through so much punishment throughout his life he doesn't understand that killing people is wrong. He thinks that if he’s gone through excruciating pain that others should too. His guilt has skipped right over his head because of the terrible things that have happen to him. The Misfit believes that he hasn't done anything wrong he claims the reason he went to jail for killing his father is not true. The reader finds it hard to tell if he is telling the truth or not. Not to mention that the Misfit also enjoys the power of being the one in control. The Misfit is an interesting person to understand throughout the whole story. Clark suggests that “The Power the Misfit has in the story resides not only to his gun and his sidekicks. He is energized by his keenness, his experience, his knowledge of evil” (113). This shows that the Misfit is eager to find people and kill them. He is so caught up on the evil things that happened to him that it caused him to ruin people’s lives. He doesn't realize to put everything that has happen to him behind him. He has a different way of interpreting everything that is going on in his life. The right and wrong thing to do at every given moment. The Misfit deals with evil by taking out his pain on

others.
Furthermore, the setting plays an important role to the theme of the story. The time period is not directly stated in the story, but it can be inferred that it happens around the 1940s-1950s because the grandma talks about old plantations and Red Sammy’s Barbecue joint. There is tension in the beginning of the story on the views of races during this time. The grandma emphasizes the time periods view on races when she states, “He probably didn’t have anything. Little niggers in the country don’t have things we do. If I could paint, I’d paint that picture” (O’Connor 35). This shows the division between races. Most white people during this time period believed that every African-American didn’t have anything and they were poor. She says this to her grandchildren which probably isn’t the right thing to tell young kids. She doesn't realize that you never should judge anyone just because of the color of their skin. Society during this time was really different than present day. The grandmother and other “old ladies exactly reflect the banalities of the society and the effect is comical rather than evil” (Maton 107). This shows that the grandmother was more comical than evil but it still doesn't make her a good person. The grandmother is not considered an evil person but she tends to throw in some humor every once in awhile. She doesn't understand that being comical about certain topics can be just as bad as being evil. In the story even though the setting isn't directly stated it is still a key component to the theme of the story.
Lastly, the tone O’Connor uses throughout the story changes from the beginning to the end and it really helps determine the theme of the story. The grandma tends to be humorous when it comes to some serious situations in the story. For instance, there were two more pistol reports and the grandmother raised her head like a parched old turkey hen crying for water and called, "Bailey Boy, Bailey Boy!" as if her heart would break. (O’Connor 41). This shows that the grandma’s son just died but she really doesn't show that must concern. She just calls out his name a couple of times. Any grandma would go out of her way to save her family and find out what happened. The grandmother is a selfish person that only cares about herself she doesn't realize that she should put others before herself. Also, in the story there is usage of Irony. One irony O’Connor uses is dramatic irony. The irony involves the family’s interaction with the Misfit, when readers figure out the importance of the situation yet the characters do not. Bailey states “We’re in terrible predicament! Nobody realizes what this is” (Wilson 103). This shows that the characters don’t figure out right away that the man they see is the Misfit that they were trying to avoid. The readers can infer from the text that it is the Misfit. The family just thinks it’s a guy that is trying to help them after the crash. The tone of humor and irony makes it difficult for the reader to take this horrible experience seriously.
How could anyone who reads this story not be disturbed by the actions of the characters? The reader knows that the actions of the characters are disturbing and represent guilt of some sort. The grandmother is guilty of racism yet she doesn’t realize it. She is also guilty of putting herself first and not thinking of others as she did nothing when her son, and grandchildren were killed. The Misfit is another character guilty of killing many people because he felt he was incorrectly punished for something he didn’t do. His delusion between good and evil causes his irrational behavior. The title of this story ironically states “A Good Man is Hard to Find” because there are no good characters in this story and they are doing many bad things yet they don’t realize it.