A Good Man Is Hard To Find Religion

In the short story A Good Man Is Hard to Find, written by Flannery O’Connor, the theme that the definition of a ‘good man’ is mysterious and flawed is apparent. The reader must realize that it is difficult to universalize the definition of a good man because every person goes through different experiences. Thus, these experiences affect his or her viewpoint and in turn flaw ones view on a good man. O’Connor conveys this theme through her excellent use of diction, imagery, foreshadowing, and symbolism as well as through a creative use of repetition and an omniscient point of view.

Thesis Statement: In Flannery O'Connor's short story, "A Good Man is Hard to Find”, the grandmother's journey from being controlling and selfish to graceful symbolizes a Christian's journey toward salvation.

Working Thesis: In “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, O’Connor uses the corrupt, manipulative character of the grandmother, as well as the story’s plot and theme in order to emphasize the flaws of the church and the need for grace.

    “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” one of O’Connor’s best works, describes a family on a trip to Florida and their encounter with an escaped prisoner, The Misfit. Although “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is an early work in O’Connor’s career, it contains many of the elements which are used in the majority of her short stories. The grandmother, a selfish and deceitful woman, is a recipient of a moment of grace, despite her many flaws and sins. A moment of grace is a revelation of truth. When the grandmother calls The Misfit her child and reaches out to touch him, the grandmother has a moment of grace that enabled her to see The Misfit as a suffering human being who she is obligated to love. The grandmother realizes that nothing will stop The Misfit from killing her but she reaches out to him despite this. The Misfit rejects her love and kills her anyway. This moment of grace is very important

While writing “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, Flannery O’Connor uses a modernist lens to fully flesh out the characters and theme of her story. One of the most visible examples of Modernism in the story, is when the Grandmother, staring down the barrel of a gun, tells the Misfit “To pray so that Jesus will help him,” (O’Connor, 306) which the Misfit replies with “I’m fine on my own.” (O’Connor, 307) The interaction between these two characters near the end of the short story exemplifies modernism, as it departs from long time, set, orthodox religious thought and defies tradition. Another example of modernism in this story, is the misfit himself. Established in the beginning of the story, the stereotypical, religious, traditional

An ardent Catholic as she was, Flannery O’Connor astonishes and puzzles the readers of her most frequently compiled work, A Good Man Is Hard to Find. It is the violence, carnage, injustice and dark nooks of Christian beliefs of the characters that they consider so interesting yet shocking at the same time. The story abounds in Christian motifs, both easy and complicated to decipher. We do not find it conclusive that the world is governed by inevitable predestination or evil incorporated, though. A deeper meaning needs to be discovered in the text. The most astonishing passages in the story are those when the Grandmother is left face to face with the Misfit and they both discuss serious religious matters. But at the same time it is the

Exploring the idea that all men are born sinners, O’Connor demonstrates immoral indulgences entertained by various characters. Readers are introduced to grandmother, an elderly woman whose consistent unscrupulous behavior exhibits her inner motives. Grandmother uses subtle, indirect confrontation to get her way until she is faced with The Misfit, a runaway criminal who believes that crime is a justifiable. In “A Good Man Is Hard To Find,” Flannery O’Connor uses characterization to display a loss of morals, imagery to portray evil in society, and symbolism to emphasize the struggle of obtaining grace to prove how life is nihilistic without religion.

Writer Flannery O’Connor is known for her very few, yet very famous Southern Gothic works of literature. A key component O’Connor uses in her stories are “moments of grace”. O’Connor describes these as situations, usually violent, which “return [her] characters to reality and prepare them” to reach a peak of religious enlightenment. Her work which most prominently features a “moment of grace” is her 1955 short story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”. Once the family has all been shot by the criminals except for the grandmother At the point in the story where all the family has been shot and killed except for the grandmother, we are presented with the grandmother’s “moment of grace”. Whilst the Misfit is discussing being unsure about Jesus raising

“A Good Man is Hard to Find” tells a twisted story of a typical family going about a road trip embedded with ethical pit stops along the way. The story revolves around a cynical grandmother and how her unconventional attitude and habits set the stage for an interesting turn of events. Through manipulative antics, a prejudice character and an ironic story line, author Flannery O’Conner creates a captivating tale that shines a lights on readers’ own moral codes. The author does this by making an example of a woman completely unaware of her own immoral acts.

In Flannery O'Connor's eccentric short story, “A Good Man is Hard to Find” the reader is introduced to her fundamental theme of Identity through a typical southern family. O’Connor’s exceptional use of fictional elements such as characterization, point of view, and setting further develop this theme in her work. She does so by familiarizing the use of violence, humor, and salvation along with point of view and setting to create a deeper connection between her work and the reader.

In Flannery O’Connor’s short story, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”, she employs varying literary techniques, such as symbolism, motifs, and the grotesque, to achieve her underlying goal of exhibiting the Catholic theme of salvation and redemption. O’Connor also employs the confrontation between goodness and evil in “A Good Man Is Hard to Find.” Flannery O’Connor applies symbolism and archetypes to illustrate her Catholic themes of salvation in “A Good Man Is Hard to Find.” The Misfit symbolizes evilness and sin, while furthermore displaying a violent nature.

As the grandmother is presented with the possibility of death, she all of a sudden becomes a God-fearing, religious woman, begging and pleading for Jesus: “If you would pray,” the old lady said, “Jesus would help you” (O’Connor, 271). She has given no indication, up to this point, that she has even an inkling of faith; though it can surely be assumed that she does partake in religion, as she is a true-as-the-Earth, Southern lady, a people that are truly renowned for their “Bible-thumping.” When also presented with the possibility that maybe Jesus was no more than just a human with a few tricks up his sleeves- “Maybe He didn’t raise the dead,” the old lady mumbled (O’Connor, 272)- the granny feels betrayed and cheated. Could her whole life of worship be a

On the other hand, at the end of the story before the grandmother is shot by the misfit, she is redeemed and has a moment of grace where she sees the mistakes she has made. She then

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.

"A Good Man is Hard to Find" is an extremely powerful commentary that elucidates Flannery O'Connor's opinions about religion and society. Like the majority of her other works, " A Good Man is Hard to Find" has attracted many "interpretations based on Christian dogma" (Bandy 1). These Christian explications are justified because Miss O'Connor is notorious for expressing Catholic doctrines through her fiction. Once she even remarked "I see from the standpoint of Christian orthodoxy" (Kropf 1). This longstanding reputation compels every critic of O'Connor to expose the religious convictions encrypted within her stories. The grandmother's final gesture towards the Misfit is not a