In Flannery O'Connor's short story "A Good Man is Hard to Find", a large deal of irony is used to express her views on how people and culture changed. O'Connor used the grandmother as a key component in the story because of her personality and also because of her old age. O'Connor was able to show her feelings about the devaluation of respect for family and elders through the grandmother. The story's idea probes into deeper things than just respect.
             The beginning of the story is an essential part to expose the reader to the impression that the grandmother is little respected to by any members of the family. The grandmother begins by telling Bailey, her only son, not to take the trip to Florida because she had just learned that a crazed killer by the name Misfit is on the run in that area. But when this argument brought upon the family, "Bailey didn't look up from his reading so she wheeled around then and faced the children's mother,"(117). The mother also showed the same actions as Bailey did. An important element in this scene was when the grandmother was astounded that her family totally ignored her, that Bailey is willing to take his family into such a place with possible danger. "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."(117) she said. The first impressions many readers would probably think about the grandmother's remark was that this is the only way for her to get off of going on the trip to Florida, although it was an example for O'Connor to show how family life have changed from her time. Even with changing family styles, grandparents are a group of people who are usually admired and looked up to by family members especially the young children.
             The aspect of this story that made it even more powerful was to include the children in playing a role that wa...