A Good Man Is Hard To Find Character Analysis

In the Flannery O’Connor’s short story, “A Good Man is Hard to Find” we find out that the title indicates of what the story is about. The title actually came from the lyrics of a song written by Eddie Green in 1918. The title of “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Conner is quite ironic really. The reader expects to eventually find a good man in the story, but is quite surprised at the ending of the story. The title "A Good Man is Hard to Find" is expressed clearly in this story by introducing a variety of male personalities that all have one thing in common; they are not truly good men.

The short story, “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, written by Flannery O’Connor, depicts the cold-hearted murder of a family by a group of escaped convicts led by an infamous killer, The Misfit. O’Connor leaves the readers waiting for good to overcome evil, but never lets them have their envisioned ending which gives this story its intriguing draw. Flannery O’Connor uses literary techniques such as conflicts, foreshadowing, imagery, simile, and irony to create unusual characters and a twisted plot.

She doesn’t know that she isn’t where she thinks she is, so she gives directions, then they get into a car crash, which is due to her obliviousness of her surroundings. In addition, to her obliviousness the crash was also due to her manipulative behavior. The whole reason they go to the plantation is because she manipulates her son into taking everyone. She does this by enticing the kids on how exciting and wonderful the house and land were, so the children were super excited and Bailey didn’t want to ruin the trip so he takes them, even though he does not want to go. While he drives up they then have the car crash into a ditch, which the grandmother then remembers how this isn’t even the state of where she would visit the old plantation, but decides to keep that to herself (O’Conner pgs. 410-412).

Bailey the father wants to take his family on a vacation from Georgi to Florida, while the “grandmother” his mother want to take a trip to East Tennessee to connect/ visit friends. To persuade her son to follow her wishes she works to change his mind with a news article about states there is an escaped murderer from the Federal Pen that calls himself “The Misfit” heading towards Florida and she points out what he did to people all while “She argues that his children, John Wesley and June Star, have never been to East Tennessee.” The grandmother is labeled as “Arrogant, hypocritical, manipulative and interfering, but she has no name throughout the story like the wife and baby” (Kirk).

In the stories, A Good Man Is Hard to Find by Flannery O’Connor and Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been by Joyce Carol Oates, both O’Connor and Oates explore the idea that Misperception and illusions can be deadly. Oates uses the character of Grandmother to represent his theme, as she deceives many people throughout the story. At the very beginning of the story, we discover that Grandmother tries to deceive the people around her with her appearance. “In case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once that she was a lady,” (O’Connor 178). We also discover that Grandmother takes advantage of her son, Bailey, to get him to do what she wants. Her biggest lie, was where the plantation was, “[…] the house she remembered

“A Good Man is Hard to Find” is about a family that is taking a trip to Florida for vacation, while an escape convict is on the loose. He is also heading to Florida. The family is riding down a dirt road because the Grandmother supposedly remembers it. The car flips over into a ditch and three men show up to help the family. Only, the men are criminals and the Grandmother says, “I recognized you at once!” (O’Conner 426) This criminal’s name is “The Misfit” because “[he] can’t make what all [he] done wrong fit what all [he] gone through in punishment” (O’Conner 429).

The short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” written by Flannery O’Connor in 1953 is a short story about a family’s misfortune after a car wreck. O’Connor describes mankind’s age old struggle with the concept of good versus evil. In O’Connor’s interpretation of the theme of good versus evil she uses one family’s unassuming adventure to paint a picture of how good will not always overcome evil. This analysis will attempt to prove that the theme of good versus evil is present throughout all aspects of the story, as seen in its characters, motifs, and symbolism, thus producing a compelling and exploratory piece of literature.

“A Good Man is Hard to Find” is a short story written by Flannery O’Connor. It starts off with the central character or rather the grandma trying to change her families’ mind about their vacation destination. Despite the grandmother’s interests, however, they decide to go to Florida. From the time of this decision until the end of story, the grandmother causes a great deal of conflict. Due to her poor character and choices, the family gets into a car accident that eventually brings them face to face with a murderer. It is not until she is the last one alive that she begs the Misfit for mercy and demonstrates compassion. Although the grandmother seemingly has a change of character in the end, she proves herself to be a manipulative, disrespectful and prideful woman throughout the majority of the story.

In O’Connor’s short story, “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” the setting contributes to the reader's understanding of Bailey's out of tune family. We can assume the story took place in the post-war mid century era given the fact that O’Connor wrote this story in 1953 and when the grandmother says, “the way Europe acted you would think we were made of money” (O’Connor). During the 1940’s and 1950’s the backbone of the American dream was “hard work, family values, and hope” (Desmond). Families from back then were big on respect and took family time seriously. When comparing a traditional mid century family to Bailey's family there is a distinct difference that allows us to label them as a dysfunctional family. Although we do not get a look into the family's work ethic, we do get a close enough look to see their lack of family values. Throughout the story there are several times where the family reveals that they are clearly flawed with the words they choose to say or simply with their actions.

Nicoh Flores Response #1 I really admire Flannery O'Connor's compositions. Her stories all have a very enigmatic ambience. As you read her tales you get a sense of providence. She plays with the reader's mind by presenting minuscule hints in the text.

Flannery O’Connor’s “A Good Man is Hard to Find’ tells of a seemingly normal family with a bit of dysfunction. Throughout this tale, the author fabricates a number of characters, some inconsiderable, others full of depth and history that present themselves wildly open to interpretation. Looking into O’Connor’s past, it is clear to see her relationship with a number of these fictional minds and pull from these the meaning behind her hidden pain and anguish. We are therefore presented with a mother and sons family who are prisoners in a manipulative, destructive relationship.

In the short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” the author, Flannery O’Connor communicates literary symbols and prominence of Southern culture. Within the story, there are subtle yet important details that make the entirety of the piece as iconic as it is. The reoccurring theme of being a lady and moral codes both are important to the overall concept of the story.

In “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, by Mary Flanders O’Connor, although religion is evident throughout the story and there can be many arguments made that this piece is attempting to show that the grandmother is capable of change it is possible for redemption by making the grandmother into a round character, I think the more important message is that the grandmother is a flat character from start to finish.

In Flanney O’Connor’s short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find, is based on a fictional story of a family who plans to take a trip Florida; however, due to an accident, they never arrive as planned. O’Connor directs the reader’s attention to how the word “good” is used symbolically throughout the story. O’Connor believed that no matter what people have done in their lives, they could be forgiven of their sins. Through the story, O’Connor portrayed numerous domestic encounters and depicts how each one is relatively greedy in their personal manner. This shadowy story of a self-centered and snobby grandmother’s vacation with her family is marinated in association to the belief of Christianity. The story starts out with a self-centered grandmother who tries to make her son, Bailey, to take their trip to Tennessee instead of Florida due to the fact there was a fugitive who is known is known as “Misfit”, but what she really is doing is trying make him feel guilty when in fact, she really is trying to manipulate him. Since the grandmother did not get any conversation from her son, she reiterated the same question to her daughter-in-law. It is apparent that the family argues a lot, and the grandmother is ignored. The children liked to make fun of their grandmother even though she was sassy herself. If the truth be known, the grandmother really wanted to go to Tennessee herself. Although the grandmother was going no matter where they went, she never stopped squabbling. June Star and

“A Good Man Is Hard to Find” was written by Flannery O’Connor. Flannery O'Connor was an American writer and essayist. O’Connor is mainly known for her short stories and the short story that she is mainly known for is “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” which was published in 1953. In O’Connor’s short story, “A Good Man is hard to find” shows us about the character’s religious beliefs and the outcome of a grandmother’s selfishness.