Student
Flannery O?Connor?s ?A Good Man Is Hard To Find,? is an account of how a homicidal maniac slaughters a family of ordinary, innocent people whom he happens to encounter on the road. O? Connor interprets the dialogue between the grandmother and the Misfit as a comment on general human and Christian values; represented in the themes of the dysfunctional family, society as a dysfunction and the role of Christianity interwoven in the dialogue. O?Connor?s obvious displeasure with contemporary society is woven in the story, and presented through an interesting generation gap. The story begins with the typical nuclear family, challenged by the grandmother who does not want to take the family vacation to Florida, but rather East Tennessee. She reads about a crazed killer by the name of The Misfit, who is on the run, heading towards Florida as well. 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 and ?what he did to those people,? foreshadows what will happen to them (Brooks 307). O?Connor doesn?t mention this in the beginning of the story as a mute point, it?s
Like the Devil?s comparison of himself to that of God, the Misfit at one point in the story likens himself to that of Jesus. The reference of the grandmother being a Christ-like figure of the story is most pertinent on the last scene. Her character goes as far as bringing the cat along on the trip not as a comfort zone for her, but rather for the good of the cat. He respected the power of the words because he felt they defined what he does. O?Connor is getting the reader to visualize the beauty of Southern culture, and showing the grandmother?s readiness for death. He has to justify this to himself, determining whether the system of society is doing its job correctly (Brooks 318). While on the drive to their destination, she sits and admires the scenery and the beauty of the world outside of the car, as the other family members were more interested in the funny papers or the sports section (Brooks 308). As if she was cleansing his soul as God would after the sacrament of reconciliation. O?Connor brings forth a truly evil presence with this character in that regard, but at the same time allows the reader to become sympathetic to his condition. This act of reaching out is symbolic to the forgiveness of God to even the !most evil souls, if the soul reaches back to God in return. The victims in this story are not heroic figures reduced to misfortune, but yet ordinary characters who succumb to an ill fate. The Misfit is also is an avid record keeper, as he writes down his activities and assigns his signature as well. ------------------------------------------------------------------------**Bibliography**. obvious that this interesting fact is going to have a significant impact on the characters later in the story. The only pleasure that the Misfit got out of the killing of the grandmother is the meanness behind the act itself.
Common topics in this essay:
June Stars,
Jesus Judas,
John Wesley,
Jesus OConnor,
God Misfit,
June Star,
OConnors Hard,
Jesus Misfit,
East Tennessee,
Lee Hiram,
contemporary society,
bobby lee hiram,
grandmother christ-like figure,
meet fate,
lee hiram,
christ-like figure,
brooks 308,
forgiveness god,
human christian values,
grandmother misfit,
god misfit,
confronted misfit,
reference grandmother christ-like,
brooks 318,
|
Acceptance Essays
