A Good Man Is Hard To Find
Flannery O’Connor “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor tells the gruesome story of a grandmother and her family on their way to Florida for a family vacation, along the way they visit an old plantation from the grandmother’s childhood. O’Connor uses witty characterization and dramatic irony in order to depict the moral of the story: good men, if not impossible, are extremely hard to find. O’Connor expresses her general view towards the male gender and their barbaric nature, while using the image of an innocent, loving family, in opposition to the antagonist in order to provoke sympathy and a deeper understanding of the moral. The use of dramatic irony, strong imagery and unique characterization …show more content…
The family is halted by a group of murderers, including the Misfit, who are hunting them down for absolutely no reason. O’Connor characterizes these men as barbaric and awful, giving no explanation for their desire to kill the family. By doing this, O’Connor subtly hints her views on the male population and their unjustifiable acts; only men would be capable of killing an entire family for absolutely no good reason. This plotline tells more about O’Connor than it does about the story; it expresses her feministic views and explains her discontent with the behavior of men. The use of extreme circumstances in the story help characterize men in a very dim light. More interestingly, O’Connor fixates on the Misfit and his character throughout the story. O’Connor uses the word “Misfit” to label the antagonist to provoke empathy, ironically, from the audience, for a cold-blooded killer. She writes, “Without his glasses, The Misfit's eyes were red-rimmed and pale and defenseless-looking.” The Misfit is miserable; he is none other than unhappy with his circumstances and not proud of his actions. He seems lost, dazed, and confused. The Misfit’s psychopathic activities prove he has no conscience, but his interaction with the old lady has a powerful effect on him and sheds light on his character. Before killing the grandmother, she tries to talk the Misfit out of his inevitable actions. She calls him a good man, and questions his capability of murdering an old woman, like herself, in cold blood. She says to the misfit, "Jesus! the old lady cried. "You've got good blood! I know you wouldn't shoot a lady! I know you come from nice people! Pray! Jesus, you ought not to shoot a lady. I'll give you all the money I've got!" The old lady becomes desperate and begins to resort to reasoning with the Misfit, who, himself, does not understand his actions nor his punishments. Before her death, she reaches out to the lost soul and tells the Misfit