Corrupted Grandma

741 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Literary analysis a good man is hard to find

A stereotype grandmother is one who can be described as selfless and sweet, with savory cooking that cannot compare to any other. In Flannery O’Connor’s short story, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” however, a very different image of a grandmother is presented. The grandmother considers herself to be a lady, and expects those around her to treat her as if she is one. She tries to be manipulative throughout “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”, constantly trying to get the others to do things her way. Although she usually fails in her attempts at manipulation, she does succeed once. It is with this success that the scene is set for death to show O’Connor’s meaning. The deaths of the family are used to demonstrate how the selfish manipulation of others can lead to grim consequences. The grandmother shows throughout the short story that she is concerned for herself only. From the beginning, when she tries to make the family go up to Tennessee because she wanted to, until the end when she only stands up for herself against The Misfit. The grandmother, because she considered herself to be a lady, and few others to be good, saw herself above those around her. She saw something special in herself, which was why she insisted to The Misfit that, “You wouldn’t shoot a lady” (14). Even as her son is taken back into the woods to be shot, she remains still. This combined with the authority that she feels comes with her age and position in the family vault her importance far above that of her family that she is with. Her self-elevation, in turn, affects her morals, as she sees the flaws in others but not in herself, and views it as selfish when others get what they want. The grandmother’s narrow-minded egocentric behavior that she exhibits, along with he... ... middle of paper ... ...grandmother had more chances, despite her antics, to save the family from its fate that she gave them. When she had first realized that the plantation was in Tennessee, she did not tell the family but instead kept quiet. To her, it was more important to save face and to deal with whatever consequences would come later. She also shows that she is conscious of the burden that she gave the family by faking an injury in the accident in the hopes that Bailey does not “wrath would not come down on her all at once” (11). Despite being able to see physical damage that she had caused, she still does not show any remorse for anything that has happened. It is part of her selfishness hide behind the act of nothing being her fault, and she hopes to make the family find ways to blame themselves or others, anything other than the grandmother, for their grim consequences they face.

Show More
Related

  • Irony and Foreshadowing in Flannery O’Connor’s A Good Man is Hard to Find

    1618 Words  | 4 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Manipulation and Deception in A Good Man is Hard to Find by Flannery O’Connor

    1487 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Selfishness In A Good Man Is Hard To Find

    1258 Words  | 3 Pages

    “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.

    Read More

  • Flannery O'Connor's A Good Man is Hard To Find

    1137 Words  | 3 Pages

    Flannery O’Connor’s A Good Man Is Hard to Find is one of the most well-known short stories in American history. A Good Man Is Hard to Find is a disturbing short story that exemplifies grace in extremity as well as the threat of an intruder. The story tells of an elderly grandmother and her family who embark on a road trip to Florida. The grandmother is a stubborn old woman with a low sense of morality. While on the trip, the grandmother convinces her son to take a detour which results in a broken down car and an encounter with a convicted fugitive, The Misfit. Although the grandmother pleads for mercy, The Misfit kills off the rest of her family. Through the grace she finds in her extreme circumstance, the grandmother calls The Misfit her own and implores him to spare her life. The Misfit does not oblige her and states after her death, “She would have been a good woman if it had been someone to shoot her every day of her life.” Through Flannery O’Connor’s disturbing and shocking display of the grandmother’s demise, she gives the reader a sense of the threatening power of an intruder and the idea of extreme situations bringing about a state of grace. The reason for such a powerful work may have resulted from Flannery O’Connor’s religious upbringing as well as the state of the nation at the time.

    Read More

  • The Misfit and the Grandmother in Flannery O’ Connor's "A Good Man is Hard to Find"

    941 Words  | 2 Pages

    The granny and the misfit are two completely opposite characters that possess two different beliefs. The grandmother puts herself on a high pedestal and the way she calls the misfit ‘a good person’ based upon his family background gives the reader an idea of what the grandmother acknowledges to be considered as ‘good’. Self absorbed as sh...

    Read More

  • The Grandmother in A Good Man is Hard to Find by Flannery O'Connor

    742 Words  | 2 Pages

    The grandmother is the central character in the story "A good man is hard to find," by Flannery O'Connor. The grandmother is a manipulative, deceitful, and self-serving woman who lives in the past. She doesn't value her life as it is, but glorifies what it was like long ago when she saw life through rose-colored glasses. She is pre-scented by O'Connor as being a prim and proper lady dressed in a suit, hat, and white cotton gloves. This woman will do whatever it takes to get what she wants and she doesn't let anyone else's feelings stand in her way. She tries to justify her demands by convincing herself and her family that her way is not only the best way, but the only way. The grandmother is determined to change her family's vacation destination as she tries to manipulate her son into going to Tennessee instead of Florida. The grandmother says that "she couldn't answer to her conscience if she took the children in a direction where there was a convict on the loose." The children, they tell her "stay at home if you don't want to go." The grandmother then decides that she will have to go along after all, but she is already working on her own agenda. The grandmother is very deceitful, and she manages to sneak the cat in the car with her. She decides that she would like to visit an old plantation and begins her pursuit of convincing Bailey to agree to it. She describes the old house for the children adding mysterious details to pique their curiosity. "There was a secret panel in this house," she states cunningly knowing it is a lie. The grandmother always stretches the truth as much as possible. She not only lies to her family, but to herself as well. The grandmother doesn't live in the present, but in the past. She dresses in a suit to go on vacation. She states, "in case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once that she was a lady." She constantly tries to tell everyone what they should or should not do. She informs the children that they do not have good manners and that "children were more respectful of their native states and their parents and everything else." when she was a child.

    Read More

  • Similarities Between The Misfit And A Good Man Is Hard To Find

    813 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Exploring Characters and Themes in A Good Man Is Hard to Find by Flannery O'Connor

    1264 Words  | 3 Pages

    Flannery O'Connor once said of her writing, "All my stories are about the action of grace on a character that is not very willing to support it, but most people think of these stories as hard, hopeless and brutal." This statement is especially true when matched with O'Connor's "A Good Man is Hard to Find," in which character plays such an essential role within the story. Through her characters, particularly the Grandmother and the Misfit, O'Conner manages to inject many elements; the characters embody symbols and themes such as O'Brien's message of Christianity.

    Read More

  • Good Man Is Hard To Find Misfit

    1101 Words  | 3 Pages

    She is a manipulator when it comes to any aspect of her life. Ideally, the grandmother was selfish and care about herself. For instance, when the author has her saying “In case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once that she was a lady (O’Connor). The author let it be known at that second that the grandmother was only thinking about herself. As if she was traveling with a group of strangers. Throughout the story, the grandmother shows that she can be dishonest towards her family. “She woke up and recalled an old plantation that she had visited in this neighborhood once when she was a young lady” (O’Conner). The grandmother did this to manipulate the situation causing the ride to be delayed. Thus, she was lying to the children about the secret panel in the house. Therefore, she caused chaos in the car. The author made it seem that the grandmother was very content with that she has caused. Even when she realized that the location of the house that she was referring to was not up that road at all. But she remained quiet or did she know this along. She was quick to judge and tell someone what not to do. But she never turned her eye on herself. That she was selfish and dishonest to her

    Read More

  • Irony in a Good Man is Hard to Find

    954 Words  | 2 Pages

    Flannery O’ Connor’s story: “A Good Man is Hard to Find” is the tale of a vacation gone wrong. The tone of this story is set to be one irony. The story is filled with grotesque but meaningful irony. I this analysis I will guide you through the clues provided by the author, which in the end climax to the following lesson: “A Good Man” is not shown good by outward appearance, language, thinking, but by a life full of “good” actions.

    Read More

  • Human Nature In A Good Man Is Hard To Find

    1425 Words  | 3 Pages

    “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.

    Read More

  • Comparing Ginsberg, Whalen, And Revolution By Anne Waldman

    1572 Words  | 4 Pages

    In A Good Man Is Hard to Find it comes to a point where a murderous killer that will, eventually kill all of them, stops the family while they are on a trip. These scenes, that involve this murderer, give the reader an insight to who the grandmother is as a person. The grandmother throughout these scenes tries to beg for her life in a multiple number of ways. ““I just know you’re a good man,” she said desperately.” However, through her begging it is made obvious that she is only concerned about what will happen to her. The reader is given a perfect image of how self centered the grandmother is and that all that she is saying is only for her sake and not for anyone

    Read More

  • Memorable Character Essay

    1223 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Grandmother in “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, by Flannery O’Connor, is a memorable character because of her self-proclaimed wisdom, authority over the rest of her family, and the ability to look for the good in people. She is also memorable

    Read More

  • Pride In A Good Man Is Hard To Find

    694 Words  | 2 Pages

    She was already important, because she was a “lady”. Her relentless effort to present herself a southern lady is the source of her pride, unlike Mrs. Loisel which is her beauty. She liberally and often makes judgment of others. She claims that her ethics is a guiding force in her life and her ideas reflect an old-fashioned, somewhat upper-crust Southern mindset. it's has to do with blood, with what kind of family into which you're born. We learn in passing that the grandmother's family had a plantation, the remains of which she points out to the kids It's has to do with blood, with what kind of family into which you're born. . She aches for the good old days when children were well-mannered, folks were trustworthy, and there were pretty plantations to visit. "In my time," said the grandmother, folding her thin veined fingers, "children were more respectful of their native states and their parents and everything else. People did right then." She also manipulated her son, mostly because he wouldn’t take her opinion to account. "Just you read it. I wouldn't take my children in any direction with a criminal like that aloose in it. I couldn't answer to my conscience if I did.” (O'Connor) The grandmother lied to him, her daughter in law and grandchildren in order to do what she wanted. She confides in no one, she kept to herself when she realized that she confused the two places, because she was too prideful to admit

    Read More

  • A Good Man Is Hard To Find Analysis

    492 Words  | 1 Pages

    Flannery O’Connor’s “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” tells the story about a grandmother, her son Bailey, her daughter-in-law, and her three grandchildren, (John Wesley, June Star, and the baby) taking a vacation together. The grandma is having a problem connecting with the others because she thinks only about herself. From her conversation, the grandmother wants to go in a different direction than everyone else for vacation. Because, the grandmother is conceited, it leads her to be selfish, to lack understanding, and to be a misfit.

    Read More

More about Corrupted Grandma

Open Document