Week 8 Discussion

I believe the interior of this story is to show transformation between two characters and how compassion and grace can come into play. The grandmother is a selfish, hypocritical woman who is unaware of her behavior, she is flawed just like everyone else. The misfit is a criminal who shows very little emotion, yet he is an experienced man who is aware of his behavior and what is right or wrong. He knows the power of Jesus that the grandmother makes aware to him constantly, however he doesn’t have much belief, he doesn’t need nor want the help of Jesus. Both characters show a potential for receiving grace. Both characters show how you can change in a spec of a moment and how that affects a person differently. The misfit became egotistic as the grandmother had the realization of acceptance and seeing the good in someone and relating that to your own life, a soft moment. The interior can also be about how selfishness and fate can come into play.

Throughout the story of “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’ Connor, we understand what’s the borderline surface of this story. A family going on a road trip that eventually encounters a group of criminals along the way. The story in its interior, is much deeper however, showing this through the use of the grandma. At its interior, the story is focused on death of how the Old South operated and a birth of a new era. This is shown through the grandma, a flawed character who in the beginning, wanted nothing more than to visit the old plantation house. Her selfish desires to do so can be inferred her longing for the past, and not wanting to accept the current present on how things are now. She was represented at this point, as the old South and how things used to be. Then, when the criminals came and killed her and the entire family, it was to show the death of this Old south. With the death of the Old South, it would come with the birth of a new era. She wasn’t able to accept the change of the modern day, and as a result, she was killed off.

In Flannery O’Connor’s short fiction, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” a family is preparing to fly from Georgia to Florida for a vacation. The grandmother tries to talk the family into traveling to Tennessee instead because she has relatives there that she wants to see. But instead of disclosing her genuine intentions, the grandma uses deceit. The grandmother makes the claim that a criminal known as The Misfit has broken out of a federal prison and is rumored to be traveling to Florida. She expresses concern that they might run into him while traveling. It examines how appearance and reality clash. The grandma presents herself as a ladylike Christian, yet her interaction with The Misfit demonstrates that she does not adhere to the fundamental principle of christianity. Yet she believes herself to be a fountain of wisdom, offering advice and opinion on a myriad of topics. The Misfit, on the other hand, is exactly what he appears to be. The exchange between the Misfit and the grandmother leads to her moment of epiphany. I think what’s in the interior is the revealing of grandma’s true identity and the point that goodness can be found in the most unexpected places and people, even in an evil creature.  

Man is Hard to Find.” The story is indeed a meditation on the nature of evil, the possibility of redemption and the transformative power of grace. The character of the grandmother who initially seems like a shallow and self-centered person, is transformed through the course of the story as she confronts the reality of evil and the limitations of her own worldview the grandmother is forced to confront her own limitations and beliefs. This process is difficult and challenging, and it is characterized by elements of suspense and tension as the family’s encounter with the Misfit becomes increasingly dangerous.. Ultimately, the story shows that even in a world full of bad people, being good will always bring you redemption and will transform your character through humanity grace and empathy and understanding others.  

  Wow I can’t lie when I was first reading this story I wouldn’t expect the ending the way I was reading the introduction. In the story “A Good Man Is Hard To Find” By Flannery O’connor is a story about a family taking a road trip to Florida. The family includes the grandmother, her son Bailey, his wife and their three children. Along the trip the grandmother insists on going to this old plantation house which will then lead to this family’s demise. Going to the plantation house resulted in the family being stranded on a road that’s basically a “ghost” road. It’s deserted. Being so they are confronted by these escaped convicts led by a man called “The Misfit”. The misfit was known for having a very dark criminal record. The story takes a dark turn as The Misfit and the other convicts brutally murdered the entire family including the children. The interior of the story is basically in my opinion the idea of the nature of good and evil. The grandmother who is very flawed undergoes a moment of self awareness and is able to see the flaws when in the face of evil (the misfit) as to the misfit who can’t see the flaws in his ways.

“A Good Man is Hard to Find” is about a family on a trip to Florida and the trip goes downhill before it even started. Based off my interpretation of the family, everyone has a not-very-nice attitude. The grandma, especially. She seems to be very racist and harsh. Her family seemed to just go along with everything she said as well, so I can assume they are probably the same. I feel that the “interior” of the story leads to the grandmother and her personality/motives. It is a reminder to be mindful of our actions and words, as everything in life has consequences, some that we cannot prevent. The story also shows that even the most miserable and unkind person can change within seconds when put in a certain situation. When we think about certain things, while always hoping for the best, we must also be prepared for the worst.

Flannery O’Connor’s “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” delves into themes of grace, redemption, and the nature of evil. The story’s underlying message revolves around the spiritual transformation of the grandmother, who initially comes across as a selfish and manipulative character. However, as events unfold and her family encounters the ruthless criminal known as the Misfit, the grandmother is forced to confront her own and the reality of evil in the world. Through the character of the grandmother, the story encourages us to consider the transformative power of grace and the importance of confronting our own limitations and beliefs. the story can be seen as a possibility of redemption in a world where evil exists. It challenges readers to question their own values and beliefs and to consider the transformative power of grace in the face of darkness and despair.

We know what the story is about on the surface. What do you feel the story is about in its “interior?” On a surface level, the story is about the unfortunate murder of a family on a road trip to their final destination of Florida. Ironically, this trip did indeed end up being their “final destination”. The story seems to explore a family dynamic, and the clashing personalities of generations. The grandmother, who has more “traditional” values honestly annoyed me. However, she being brought up in a different era, her actions were understandable. Underneath the words written, the picture behind this piece is one of a woman, remembering her past, exploring her maternal instincts while also seeming to be in her own way, caring of her family but disregarded by them. Bailey, ignores his mother’s words completely. Bailey’s wife, seems to treat her mother-in-law in the same respects as her husband – perhaps because she sees it as “that’s just how the grandmother is”. The children are rude and downright disrespectful to their parents and moreover their grandmother. My view of a woman who cares deeply but is ignored, and maybe a little hurt by it, comes from what I have previously stated – the ignoring by her own son and daughter-in-law, but John Wesley and June Star’s snide remarks and comments about their grandmother coming along on all trips they take. June Star seems to always have a smart remark (even in the face of death with her comment of not wanting to hold Bobby’s hand because he looks like a pig). The grandmother, in all of her annoyance, just seems to want to enjoy her family and “the good ol’ days”. Although her constant chatter gets under everyone’s skin – remove Red Sammy – nothing she says is […]

In the case of “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” the interior of the story is complex and multilayered. One of the central themes of the story is the concept of grace, which is represented by the grandmother’s moment of recognition of The Misfit’s humanity before her death. The story suggests that grace is available to everyone, even those who have committed terrible acts, but it can only be attained through an understanding of our own flawed humanity and the humanity of others. The story also explores the idea of the South as a region with a dark history and a legacy of violence and racism. The grandmother’s nostalgia for the old plantation house, which represents a time when slavery was still legal, can be seen as a symbol of the South’s troubled past. Another important aspect of the story’s interior is its use of grotesque and violent imagery. The story’s shocking and brutal events serve to highlight the darkness and evil that can exist within human beings. This imagery also serves to underscore the story’s bleak view of the human condition.

The interior of “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor revolves around the themes of sin, grace, and redemption. While the surface of the story revolves around a family’s tragic encounter with the Misfit, the interior focuses on the grandmother’s transformation. Through her journey, the story becomes a reflection on the nature of morality and the potential for redemption. The grandmother initially appears as a manipulative and self-centered character, but as the story unfolds, she undergoes a transformation that leads to her moment of grace. This transformation highlights the possibility for redemption in even the most flawed individuals and emphasizes the power of humility and acceptance of one’s faults. Additionally, the story explores the Misfit’s nihilistic worldview, which serves as a foil to the grandmother’s journey towards grace, and underscores the importance of embracing faith and morality in one’s life. Ultimately, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” invites readers to reflect on their own struggles with morality and the possibility of redemption in the face of sin and evil.

The story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Conner entails a family of six trip down to Florida that quickly takes a turn for the worse. The story shows how one’s true colors in the face of adversity.  Midway through the second page we learn how even after such a long life the grandmother still isn’t ready to face death. Some elements do make the story work with any action unlike any other in the story here’s where the part of the story comes where I feel it’s interior. When the grandmother is last alone facing the Misfit, we the reader point out all of her flaws that got her to this point being manipulative and sly. It lets you start to see a theme from the story with morality and narcissistic only in the face of death we saw the error of her ways.

I feel that the stories interior is based on the grandmother who has transformed herself from being a person that is self centered and who manipulates other people to having sympathy and a warm corner for other people including the killer.It also tells us no matter how many bad deeds you do in life but as long as you repent to God with the intention to be a better person and not repeat those mistakes can actually bring you close to God. The interior of the story also tells us how a person thinks that everything they do is right no matter how big the crime, instead of realizing what actually is the right thing, which causes a conflict between our moral and ethical beliefs and our actions caused by those beliefs

On the surface “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor is about a family that ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time after suffering a car accident, and is murdered one by one by a group of psychopathic murderers that have escaped from prison. When you fully analyze the characters and what they go through, the story can be broken down with more detail. In my interpretation, it is about a family full of rotten attitudes that are met by bad karma in the most extreme fashion. It’s like when Regina George from the movie “Mean Girls” is hit by a Bus by the end of the film. In reality did her horrible actions mean she deserved to go through that? No, but since it’s fiction and no real harm is done, there can be a sense of “that’s what you get” for some. It is very clear that the grandmother in the story is racist by the way she spoke about the poor children with no pants that they drove by, or the story she told about the black boy that stole the watermelon. By the way her family never condemns the way she speaks about black people, I can only assume they didn’t have an issue with her politics. During the climax of the story, the grandmother pulls every trick out of the book to try and stop the group of men from continuing their acts of evil when finally the killer had enough and finished the job. The punch to the ground beforehand was more about his conflicting feelings about religion than what the grandmother had to say, he seemed tired of her talking and finally reached a boiling point when she touched him. The misfit says that the grandmother would’ve […]

The story ”A Good Man Is Hard To Find” by Flannery O’Conner definitely took a sudden turn I was not expecting. I probably should have expected it based on the foreshadowing in the beginning with the grandmother talking about The Misfit headed toward Florida and the family going on the trip to Florida anyway despite her suggestion to go to Tennessee instead. On its interior, the story portrays prejudicial ideations. The grandmother seems to be unaware of the internalized racism she is exhibiting on the drive. She has also proven to be manipulative by her actions leading up to the accident, but turns into a completely different person in the face of death. The story also portrays tense relationships between family members. This can be seen throughout the story with the constant disrespect Bailey exhibits toward his mother – especially at the end of the story, “Bailey turned his head sharply and said something to his mother that shocked even the children. The old lady began to cry and The Misfit reddened.” Interestingly, there is an aspect of psychology that can be seen in this quote because while we know The Misfit to be a murderer, he seems to be equally offended by the way Bailey speaks to his mother. To further this point, the Misfit implies the possibility of religion having been able to save him, “The Misfit said. ‘I wisht I had of been there,’ he said, hitting the ground with his fist. ‘It ain’t right I wasn’t there because if I had of been there I would of known. Listen lady,’ he said in a high voice, ‘if I had of been there I would of known and I wouldn’t be like I am now.’ His voice seemed about to crack…” In this quote, The Misfit is […]

In “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” Flannery O’Connor is about the struggle between good and evil, and the consequences of making the wrong choices. The story follows a family of five, the grandmother, her son and daughter-in-law, and her two grandchildren, as they travel to Florida for a vacation. Along the way, the grandmother insists that they take a detour to visit an old plantation she remembers from her childhood. This detour leads them to a confrontation with a dangerous criminal, The Misfit, and his gang. The story is a commentary on the human condition, and the consequences of our choices. The grandmother is a symbol of the human tendency to make bad decisions, and her insistence on taking the detour leads to the family’s downfall. The Misfit is a symbol of evil, and his presence serves as a reminder of the consequences of our choices. The story also serves as a warning against the dangers of pride and arrogance, as the grandmother’s pride leads her to make the wrong decision. Ultimately, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is a story about the struggle between good and evil, and the consequences of our choices. It is a warning against pride and arrogance, and a reminder of the importance of making the right choices.

After reading the short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, the story’s interior depth can be analyzed for a better understanding.  The main character, the grandmother was plagued by her own bad traits that eventually led to her own downfall. The grandmother was manipulative and tricky, even if she transitions a little towards the end. When the author shows this transition to readers, it portrays an emotional journey that the grandmother undertakes. For example, the surface of the story as described is a tale of suspense dealing with a family. However, the interior of the story can be described as that emotional journey the grandmother goes through. Furthermore, the author is trying to convey how even the most detrimental person to others can change with a moment of realization or tragedy that occurs to them. A main theme I noticed while reading this short story was grace and humanity. This story shows a close resemble to the society we live in today and expresses very similar experiences we all have had.

Flannery O’Connor demonstrates how racism is taught in “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” (a novel). My personal favorite was the granny character. She made racial jokes, was critical of black people, and exudes pride. Since they harbored such a great amount of anger, I think the accident that occurred was their karma. She moved around with an air of intoxication. Because of this attitude, she made poor choices. To boost her self-confidence, she boasts to the kids about a variety of things. She took pleasure in the kids’ emotions. She centered the entire trip around herself and demonstrated how much power she wielded over everyone with whom she came into contact.

“A Good Man Is Hard To Find” tells of a family driving from Georgia to Florida. They get into an accident while driving and are found by a trio of men led by the Misfit, an escaped convict mentioned by the grandmother in the beginning of the story. This interaction between the family and the Misfit is not just a murderous event. The Misfit and the grandmother discuss morality, religion and the penal system. This conversation evokes the nature vs. nurture debate- what determines the Misfit’s evilness, genetics or the environment. The Misfit states that a psychiatric doctor at a penitentiary told him he killed his father, despite him remembering his father dying from the flu earlier in time. With this information and the descriptions of the cruel treatment he has endured, the reader cannot help but put blame on the penal system for the Misfit’s violent disposition. This also made me think of how the harshness of an older generation, shown by the grandmother’s selfish stubbornness, can negatively affect the younger generation. It is not just the penal system, but the standards of society set by closed-minded people that are also to blame. Realistically, Jesus is not going to save the Misfit, like the grandmother keeps proclaiming. What would have saved him from this fate is a righteous judicial system and loving support from a caretaker growing up.

The story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Conner not surprising to me. I felt I had an idea of what to expect. It gave me the feeling of society precisely what’s going on in the 21st century. There is a saying that says, “history repeats itself.”  O’Connor’s story reminds me of a family with a grandmother that always seems correct. Because we respect our elderly, we tend to do as they say because they always say they have more knowledge than anyone younger. It shows that the grandmother’s request to visit the old house killed the family. The grandmother was manipulating her family by using her evil tricks to fool them, and because her only child wanted to please her and get the kids to be quiet, he fell for it. Sometimes we put ourselves in a particular predicament, saying, “if I did know.” But as for the grandmother, when she remembers the house they were about to visit was in Tennessee, she kept it to herself; that drives me so much anger. In society, we have families that portray the same attitude as the grandmother, which usually causes arguments and disagreement, which could lead to death. After the vehicle crashed, a car came from nowhere, which seemed like it was just waiting for something like that to happen. It was like a movie scene; I was predicting what would happen. As I guess it was the Misfit, there goes O’Connor describing the men, nothing good they were up to, and unfortunately, they were being honest, but at the same time, it was a bit of fun for them. The grandmother uses Christianity words, which she might think would save her, but doesn’t show any goodness towards the story; there is violence. I think it’s like […]

In reading Flannery O’Connor’s story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” I realized that the story made me feel very sad about what had happened to that family. While I went through the pages, I was struck by how the story made me feel and think of the family and how the grandmother’s manipulative and superficial ways ultimately led to their downfall. which ultimately led to calamity they could have never anticipated or avoided. The depiction of the grandmother by O’Connor acts as a cautionary tale about how our decisions and conduct can result in disastrous outcomes. Several people within society, much like the granny herself, tend to make hasty judgments based on one’s looks or history. I believe that the “interior” of the story explores human nature intricately. It reflects on how our actions can lead to consequences and emphasizes empathy and comprehension. The final act of kindness shown by the grandmother is a poignant example that shows us an opportunity for redemption in life, while also underscoring why people should be given second chances if they want to improve themselves or change something within themselves. The sadness of this tale weighed heavily , yet I gained insight into the significance of withholding judgment based on someone’s history or outer shell.

O’Connor herself also mentioned that her creative inspiration mainly comes from religion, In the author’s view, novels should never be religious propaganda. “In every good novel there is a moment when you can feel the grace is there, waiting to be accepted or rejected.” So the old lady uttered the only profound words she said in the whole novel to the “misfit” who was wearing her son’s clothes: “You are my son, you are my own son!” She was full of enthusiasm for the murderer. Compassion may be the murderer’s unhappy childhood and the unjust case he encountered, and this moment is also a kind of “benevolent moment” for “misfit”, although this cruel nihilist did not accept this day Hui, but instinctively shot and killed the old lady, but this moment still struck his soul, and he would start to reflect on his actions. Although the old lady who accepted “Tianhui” ended her life, she was no longer the selfish and vain person at the beginning of the novel at the last moment of her life. She was “like a child” and “smiled towards the cloudless sky” “” died, and she felt happy at the end of her life.

In “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” Flannery O’Connor is a complex and multi-layered story that can be interpreted in many ways. At its core, the story is about the destructive power of pride and the human capacity for grace and redemption. The grandmother, who is the central character, embodies the theme of pride. She is selfish, manipulative, and judgmental, and believes that her own desires and opinions are more important than anyone else’s. Her pride leads her to make a series of bad decisions that ultimately result in the deaths of her entire family. However, the story also contains elements of grace and redemption. The Misfit, the violent criminal who murders the family, represents the possibility of grace and redemption. Despite his crimes, he is portrayed as a complex and sympathetic character who is struggling with issues of morality and faith. He recognizes the grandmother’s attempts to connect with him and acknowledges that she is a good person at heart, even though she has made mistakes. In the end, the grandmother’s encounter with the Misfit leads her to a moment of profound realization and humility. She recognizes her own faults and weakness, and reaches out to the Misfit with an act of compassion and love. Her act of grace is ultimately rewarded with her own redemption, as she finds a sense of peace and acceptance in the face of death. The story is about the transformative power of grace and redemption, and how it can come from unexpected sources. The element of suspense in the story serves to highlight the inner struggles and transformations of the characters, and to emphasize the possibility of redemption even in the darkest of circumstances.

After reading this story I realized its inner depth. First of all, the story tackles sensitive and controversial subjects that anyone can face early or late in their life, such as racist prejudices or stereotypes. But this text also talks about religion and being human and behaving as such. The more you read, the more you realize that the grandmother has racist prejudices that you can drink through what she says and what she does. But as the story progresses we notice that her behavior changes and this radically transforms her character. She then goes from someone totally blinded by her prejudices about others to someone more empathetic and more open to others. It is then that we approach the last two themes of this reading which are humanism and religion. This story demonstrates humanism is something that can be learned and can change a person. For example, it was by having interacted with The Misfit that she had a clearer vision of what surrounds her and that prejudices are not always true.

“Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor is a tragedy. I agree with O’Connor when she writes that readers “should know what is going to happen in this story so that the element of suspense in it will be transferred from its surface to its interior.” While reading the story, I did predict that The Misfit would want them all killed as soon as he told Bobby Lee, for the second time, to watch the kids because they “make him nervous” (line 82). In its interior, I feel that the beginning of the story is about a woman who wants her grandchildren to learn to appreciate the things around them: the scenery, the people, and the stories she had to tell. Even though she was ignorant and didn’t realize how her behavior and the things she was saying was offensive, I think she had a good intention-with the kids at least. Towards the end, I feel the story is about a man who is so angry with his upbringing that he takes it out on random people who have no significance for him as a way to heal his inner child. In the story, The Misfit saw the accident happen and then waited to approach the group, as if he was waiting for it or like he expected it to happen. After he approached them he told his story to the Old Lady, which I saw as a way for him to try and justify his actions, as he was having the others killed. He then maybe feels remorse because he tells Bobby Lee that there is no fun in killing people, yet it’s something he regularly does.

By reading the story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” I discovered that the “inside” of the story is about the elusive definition of “good man. definition. The grandmother’s reckless use of the label “good man” suggests that “good man” does not mean “moral” or “good “. For the grandmother, a man is a “good person” if his values are consistent with her own. But the grandmother was not actually a good woman. She was flawed and weak, and her age did not entitle her to special respect or reverence. In the last moments of her life, the grandmother suddenly realized that The Misfit was a fellow human being and a child of God. She took pity on him and tried to comfort him. This revelation came to her at such a time, and allowed her to die with peace in her heart. Ironically, The Misfit, while acting like a monster, creates a situation in which the grandmother experiences a moment of true selflessness before she dies.

“A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor is a story that operates on two levels. On the surface, it is a tale of a family’s encounter with a violent criminal, and the suspense that comes with the possibility of violence and death. However, O’Connor also uses this story as a vehicle to explore deeper themes related to sin, grace, and redemption. At its core, the story is about the moral and spiritual journey of the grandmother. Initially portrayed as a selfish and judgmental character, the grandmother experiences a transformation as she comes face to face with the Misfit. Through this encounter, O’Connor raises questions about the nature of evil, the possibility of redemption, and the role of faith in shaping our lives. The story suggests that even the most flawed and sinful individuals can potentially experience a moment of grace and redemption, and that this experience may come in unexpected ways. By knowing what is going to happen on the surface, we are able to fully appreciate the interior themes of the story and the questions it raises about human nature and the human condition.  

In my opinion, the interior of the story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” presents unstable families and bad societies. There are people in the world that use violence to have things go their own way, since back then and nowadays people lack the empathy for one another. In the text it states, “Our age not only does not have a very sharp eye for the almost imperceptible intrusions of grace, it no longer has much feeling for the nature of the violences which precede and follow them.” (O’Connor 2). Furthermore, violence has been the answer for the good and bad throughout history, so it is safe to say that violence will never end if it’s now considered to be human nature. The Grandmother in the story was someone with no moral integrity, she wasn’t that much different from a serial killer known as, “The Misfit”, who ends up murdering her and her family after she told them to follow orders.   There is no place without violence in this world.

The interior of “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is on the character’s spiritual quest and the issue of atonement. The Grandmother, who serves as the story’s main character, goes through a transformational event in which she is forced to face her own death and reevaluate her views and values. The Grandmother holds onto her beliefs about what makes a person “good” or “evil” throughout the novel, but when she encounters the Misfit, a violent criminal who exposes her to humanity’s darker side, her worldview is challenged. The Grandmother comes to understand later in the narrative that the Misfit’s brutal worldview is inimical to her moral convictions. The Grandmother’s journey for redemption, as she tries to relate to the Misfit on a human level and persuade him to spare her life, is ultimately the subject of the story’s interior. Offering the Misfit a little moment of grace as her final act of kindness before dying reveals that she has undergone a profound spiritual development and that her journey has deepened her knowledge of what it means to be “good.”

As I read the short story”A Good Man is Hard to Find,” I noticed the story’s interior depth. It discusses various issues, including racial prejudice, stereotyping, humanism, and religion, using colorful language and imagery that draws the reader’s attention to the author’s point of view. One of the most striking examples of stereotyping in the narrative is shown by the grandmother and The Misfit’s opinions. As the story progresses, it becomes clear that the grandmother maintains feelings of racial biases, which are reflected in her behavior and vocabulary. But, as the story goes, we see her prejudices and judgments eventually shift, resulting in a total transformation of her character. This transition does not end with the grandma. The character of The Misfit is similarly portrayed as a stereotype, with his criminal past and violent actions overlooking any possibilities for compassion or understanding. In addition to the themes of stereotyping and prejudice, the story also explores themes of humanism and religion. The grandmother’s transformation, from a self-centered and manipulative character to a more empathetic and self-aware one, is indicative of a larger message about the power of humanism. Through her experiences and interactions with The Misfit, she is forced to confront her own prejudices and shortcomings, ultimately leading to a more profound understanding of herself and the world around her.

In “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Conner we are given a Southern murder story of a family on a road trip to Florida. In this story, the grandmother is the protagonist and her character is built on pride. The grandmother prides herself in her impression on others as well as taking care of her family. She tries to lead by example by maintaining her neat appearance and teaching her grandchildren manners while also reiterating her superiority to others. Through the change of setting and building on the grandmothers paranoia of getting caught up by The Misfit during their road trip, O’Conner forebodes the fact that the family was going to get murdered eventually. I think this story reveals the interior lesson that appearance does not equate to one’s morality. For example, throughout the story, the grandmother switched from teaching her grandchildren manners and looking down on their behavior, to making racist remarks about Black people. The author builds on this irony in the conversation between the grandmother and Red Sam when he says, “A good man is hard to find” (O’Conner paragraph 42). He said this because he was cheated by guys that looked respectable and even though the grandmother has a prejudiced character, one would never know because she cleans up her appearance before the road trip just in case, “anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once that she was a lady” (O’Conner paragraph 12). This highlights how one’s appearance does not reflect their morality because you can look good and have an ugly personality. This is later addressed when the grandmother faces The Misfit and the grandmother realizes his “strong white teeth” (O’Conner paragraph 88). Even in a life threatening situation, the grandmother considers the “nice” appearance of The Misfit […]

In the story of Flannery O’Connor “A good man is not easy to find” at first glance, you can see the story of a not very close-knit family that was unlucky enough to run into a maniac in the middle of a dirt road somewhere in Tennessee. From the very beginning of the story, we understand that something terrible is going to happen. “Chekhov’s gun” in the form of a message that a dangerous criminal has escaped from prison does not bode well for the whole family, which is going to a long journey. The whole story seems to slow down, leading us to that very tragic moment. The protagonist of the story is the grandmother of the family. Loving to manipulate the family and an extremely superficial lady. In the end, because of her love of manipulation, and doing as she wants, the whole family ends up in a fatal situation. If we consider this story from the point of view of an ancient Greek tragedy, then it has undeniable similarities. In the end, the protagonist must die, and through sufferings finds catharsis. According to the author, she uses violence to bring the hero back to reality, to catharsis. And the antagonist finally says: “If it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life.” So what is the story about? From the articles of this week we can see that there are different interpretations. One of them, as mentioned above, she finally receives her sight, clears herself before the death and grace descends on her and she touches the outcast, as the author says, “like the mustard-seed, will grow to be a great crow-filled tree in the Misfit’s heart, and will be enough of a pain to him there to turn him, into the prophet…”. […]

The story ” A Good Man Is Hard To Find” by Flannery O’Conner took me completely by surprise. I didn’t know what to expect, but I did not expect that. That being said, what this story is about on the interior in my opinion is the darker corners of American society, and the horrific fascination with murder. In the beginning we get familiar with what would have been a typical southern American family preparing for a road trip. The grandmother seems to be the protagonist, she is the one leading the family. Her son, Bailey seems to reluctantly follow her orders the whole time. Unfortunately, it’s by following her order of visiting this house she suggested, that leads to the families demise. This story turns into an American horror story after they take that turn on the dirt road. Being a big fan of murder mysteries and horror movies, I can see this story playing out on the big screen. I was now fully engaged in the story once I realized the strangers they encountered happens to be The Misfit. My curiosity was peeked, I wanted to understand why this character would do this. It’s like trying to understand why the killer in slasher movies does what he does. In reality there is no answer. He was honest, for him it was fun. He says “it’s nothing for you to do but enjoy the few minutes you go left the best way you can by killing somebody or burning down his house or doing some other meanness to him”. We have seen so many movies, stories, and documentaries about murders and serial killers. We as a society seem to be fascinated by it. The tragic ending of this story with the family being murder in and thrown in the woods […]