Examples Of Foreshadowing In A Good Man Is Hard To Find

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

O’Connor also explains how the Grandmother dressed for the trip; she wore a navy dress, white gloves, and a formal hat. The reading states “In case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once that she was a lady.”(O’Connor 496). Not only is this foreshadowing, but the grandmother’s outfit can also be seen as a symbol of her skewed moral code and selfishness. When the grandmother carefully chose the outfit for this trip, she was solely concerned with how she would appear in the event that she died on her trip. She was not at all disturbed by the fact that, in the event that there was an accident, her son and grandchildren would die as well.

She intentionally lies about the house having a secret panel just to get the kids interest so that Bailey would be more likely to stop and visit. The grandmother is also portrayed as being very loud and outgoing. When the family stops at the restaurant, she carries on a conversation with a complete stranger. She also wants to get up and dance.

In the story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor starts out by giving a look at a dysfunctional family on a vacation, but ultimately, gives insight into ourselves as well as the nature of good and evil, how they can clash, and how they can co-exist, even in the same person. The setting, which plays a critical role in this short story because the grandmother shows her selfish wants and views on people and society and believes that things were much better in her early years. As the story unfolds the setting provides insights to the where the dysfunctional family will eventually meet their doom, which is

Flannery O’Connor shows her readers a realistic look at their own mortality in “A Good Man is Hard to Find.” The story is about a family of five, a father, mother, grandmother, and two children, starting out on a vacation to Florida from Georgia. The family, on their way to a routine vacation, takes a detour that will change their lives forever. Through the use of literary elements like symbolism and characterization, O’Connor creates a theme of good vs. evil, which can be felt throughout the story by tapping into the audience’s emotions.

Foreshadowing is another main element. One example appears when the grandmother is talking to Bailey stating that she would not take her kids anywhere that there is such a deranged killer on the loose (O 'Connor 276). Later as the grandmother is talking to John Wesley, she asks what he would do if he ever did run into the Misfit. He replies, ‘I’d smack his face” (O’Connor 277). As the family is riding, they see a large cotton field with five or six graves fenced in the middle of it “like a small island” (O’Connor 278). This simile represents a sense of foretold death.

In Flanner O’Connor’s “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”, the literary technique of foreshadowing appears in the very beginning of the story giving off hints of the coming dramatic events. O’Connor employs many examples of foreshadowing throughout this story. One example of foreshadowing is: “Here the fellow that calls himself The Misfit is aloose from the Federal Pen and headed towards Florida and you read here what is says he did to these people. Just you read it I wouldn’t take my children in any direction of with a criminal like that aloose in it” (O’Connor 485). This quote increases the possibility that the family may encounter The Misfit on their journey to Florida. The grandma, the main character tries to convince her family to take a

Following lunch, the family is back on the road headed home; where the family pasts a closed-in small family cemetery that belongs to a long-gone plantation, where the grandmother begins to manipulate the family especially the children into wanting to go see the plantation house by lying and telling a story of a hideaway room behind secret panels within the walls of

The family is made up of the Grandmother and her son Bailey, and his children John Wesley, June Star and the baby, and there is also the mother of his children. O 'Connor uses clues in devious ways, that doesn 't ruin the readers thoughts. She uses foreshadowing FOUR major times throughout the story: the grandmas clothes, her words, the death of her family and the conversation with the misfit. The grandma, who is the protagonist in this short story tries to persuade her son and his wife to vacation somewhere other than Florida because an escaped convict is headed to the same place they are. "Here this fellow that 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. 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."

As she is talking with her son and giving her reasons for not wanting to go to Florida we start to see through her communication and interaction with her family just how rude and unruly all of the family members are. The children, John Wesley and June Star, were constantly interrupting the grandmother with their smart remarks while she was talking. Never once are they corrected or reprimanded by their parents. The following day the family sets out on their trip early in the morning. The grandmother is the first one in the car. We get to see her being deceitful as she brings along her cat knowing that her son did not want the cat at the motel with them. She settles herself into the vehicle with her stow away and begins to situate herself. We are given the impression by how she is dressed and carries herself that this is a very elegant and sophisticated woman (398). It is not until she continues to speak and uses inappropriate and offensive language that we get a clear picture of how obnoxious she is . Her obnoxious behavior progresses throughout the story.

The use of foreshadowing in the short story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” helps the reader create a prediction of what might happen further on in the story. O’Connor uses the Grandmother to be the main speaking force, at which she warns her family about the “Misfit” breaking free from prison and on the run. Grandma says, “I wouldn’t take my children in any direction with a criminal like that aloose in it” (498). The Grandmother disapproves of her family traveling to Florida since the Misfit is on the loose and heading towards Florida as well. This is foreshadowing that predicts that the family will eventually run into the Misfit during their travel. While on the road, the family gets into a car accident where they end up running into the Misfit

As the family is driving, they come across a cotton field with five or six graves . This scene depicts what may be the clearest example of foreshadowing in the entire story. As written in the article “Gone With The Wind in Flannery O’Connor’s ‘A Good Man is Hard to Find: An Anagogical Biblical Allusion.” by David Piwinski. They speak directly about the significance of these gravestones and the conversation held between the family as they drive by “One of the most frequently cited examples of this foreshadowing is the scene in which the vacationing family passes a cotton field with "five or six graves." The grandmother mentions that this "old family burying ground" was once part of a Southern plantation, which prompts her grandson to ask, "Where's the plantation?" The grandmother, unaware of her own family's imminent doom, jokingly replies, "Gone with the Wind."[sup1] Most critics commenting on this scene have noted that the reference to the graves and the grandmother's subsequent joke are part of a pattern of comic irony in which the grandmother serves as an unwitting instrument of foreshadowing. What stands out at first is the mention of the gravestones, the fact that there is six gravestones and a total of six characters strongly highlights the foreshadowing and ironically, of death to the family. But the

A literal interpretation of the grandmother portrays an elderly southern woman attempting to maintain the proper and genteel values of the South. The grandmother places great importance on her appearance and the opinions of others. This importance is revealed at the beginning of their journey when the story compares the grandmother, a reflection of the past, to the daughter-in-law, a reflection of the present:

In Flannery O'Connor's A Good Man is Hard To Find, one is struck by the unexpected violence at the end of the story. However, if you re-read the story a second time, you will see definite signs that foreshadow the grotesque ending. The story begins with the typical nuclear family being challenged by the grandmother who doesn't want to take the vacation to Florida. She has read about a crazed killer by the name of the Misfit who is on the run heading for Florida. Unfortunately, she is ignored by every member of the family except for the little girl, June Star, who can read the grandmother like an open book. The fact that she admonishes Bailey, her son, of this Misfit

Still driving they soon pass a cotton field.  Grandma sitting in the backseat between John Wesley and June Star, starts to tell them about the people who owned the plantation and that their bodies are buried in the middle of the field.  She than starts to tell some jokes and June Star was not very fond of them.  A little later after a couple of  cat naps, Grandma says that she wants to tell the family some stories.  The children don't