Southern Gothic Characteristics

488 Words1 Page

Southern Gothic Essay Southern Gothic is a subgenre of Gothic fiction that takes place in the American South. Southern Gothic was shaped by exploring the south and criticizing the moral blindness. There are many traits that come about in Southern Gothic like Unrequited love, Good vs evil, and race. With my class I have read “ A Good Man Is Hard To Find.” and “A Rose For Emily.’ In “A Good Man Is Hard To Find”, Is a short story that in the story the grandma convinces herself and her family that she is good . I'm going to explain two traits that stuck out to me the most in this story. Good vs evil is between the grandmother and the Misfit who is a convicted killer and the grandmother who has a sense of goodness and a criminal who embodies

Show More
Related

  • The Misfit in Flannery O'Connor's A Good Man Is Hard to Find

    458 Words  | 1 Pages

    I feel that the Grandmother in the story 'A Good Man is Hard to Find' suffers from psychological conditions. She does not care at all about anyone but herself. I feel that she may even be narcissistic. It is ironic because she would be expected to look out for her family. The Cambridge Dictionary defines narcissism as 'too much interest in and admiration for your own physical appearance and/or your own abilities' It is ironic because she would be expected to look out for her family, however in reality she only really looks out for herself. She shows how self centered she really is many times throughout the story. She displays a complete lack of regard for what anyone else wants to do. All she cares about at first is what ...

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Flannery O Conner's A Good Man Is Hard To Find

    818 Words  | 2 Pages

    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

    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

  • Symbolism In A Good Man Is Hard To Find

    1452 Words  | 3 Pages

    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, ...

    Read More

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

    1062 Words  | 3 Pages

    Grandmothers are known to be loving, sweet and caring old women, not this grandma. In “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” the grandmother is a very manipulative old woman. Her cynical ways of manipulation caused her family to go through a lot of torture within only a few hours. Throughout the story she manipulates her own son, Bailey, her grandchildren, John Wesley and June Star, and even a criminal who escaped from the penitentiary. Not all old women are nice; it just so happens that this one was cynical.

    Read More

  • Symbolism In A Good Man Is Hard To Find By Flannery O Connor

    1520 Words  | 4 Pages

    “In A Good Man Is Hard To find” the Grandmother is portrayed as a main character that symbolizes a savior. O’Connor portrays the Grandmother as a savior with grace, who is

    Read More

  • Comparing the Grandmother in The Necklace and A Good Man is Hard to Find

    853 Words  | 2 Pages

    The grandmother's character in "A Good Man is Hard to Find" is also very selfish in her motivations. She felt she had to lie to her son, daughter-in-law and her grandchildren in order for her to be able to see that nice house again. "'There was a secret panel in this house' she said craftily, not telling the truth but wishing that she were, 'and the story went that all the family sil...

    Read More

  • 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

  • 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

  • Diyannery O Connor Southern Gothic

    953 Words  | 2 Pages

    The southern gothic genre can be described as a “tradition of storytelling in which engaging, violent, and frequently grotesque characters are often treated with colloquial humor” (DiYanni 181-82). This storytelling tradition is present in the literary works of Flannery O’Connor. O’Connor was a writer of short stories who admitted that her southern roots were one of the strongest influences on her writing (DiYanni 182). Though many of O’Connor’s works can be considered southern gothic, this storytelling tradition shines through most notably in her short story Everything That Rises Must Converge.

    Read More

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

    1220 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Mercy in Flannery O'Connor's A Good Man Is Hard to Find

    991 Words  | 2 Pages

    In "A Good Man Is Hard to Find," Flannery O'Connor represents her style of writing very accurately. She includes her "themes and methods - comedy, violence, theological concern - and thus makes them quickly and unmistakably available" (Asals 177). In the beginning of the story O'Connor represents the theme of comedy by describing the typical grandmother. Then O'Connor moves on to include the violent aspect by bringing the Misfit into the story. At the end of the story the theme changes to theological concern as the attention is directed towards the grandmother's witnessing. As the themes change throughout the story, the reader's perception of the grandmother also changes.

    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

  • 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

  • Southern Gothic Literature

    947 Words  | 2 Pages

    Southern Gothic literature is a group of words bonded together to set a mood, message, plot, etc. Overall Southern Gothic Literature can be interesting and creepy at the same time, its style has been practiced for many years by southern writers which are located in the American South. Its popular writings have grew from generation to generation and is now a world wide genre. Works Cited Alice, Petry. A Rose for Emily.’

    Read More

More about Southern Gothic Characteristics

Open Document