Good Man Is Hard To Find Heroism

In every good story there is a hero and a villain. Traditionally the villain will be defeated by the hero and the day will be saved. In every Great story the villain is redeemed and grace and forgiveness is identified. Flannery O’Connor’s short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” is not a traditional heroic story. In fact, her story is honestly tragic at first glance. Once you move past the deaths and horrific predicaments the characters of this story are consequently in, the story holds a greater meaning. Looking specifically at the grandmother, a self-centered, manipulative, prestigious human being, finds herself and her family on the side of the road in Georgia after a car accident. The grandmother and the rest of the family is being held

Throughout the story the grandmother is manipulative and egotistical. From the way she presents herself, to the way she sees others. It isn’t until her dwindling moments of life with the misfit that the grandmother sees that her elite bloodline or fancy dress will not be enough to save her life. One identification of the grandmother’s redemption is found in her last words to the misfit, “Why you’re one of my babies. You’re one of my own children!” The grandmother is not suddenly remembering an illegitimate child she gave up many year ago, but rather realizing that there is no difference between her and the escaped convict. The grandmother receives redemption in this moment because the grandmother had lived her entire life thinking she was above the rest of humanity, especially those of other race, ethnicity and background. Katherine Keil in her critical analysis essay “O’ Connor’s ‘A Good Man is Hard to Find’” states “The grandmother, likewise, is brought salvation by a “wretched” creature—The Misfit. At the moment of her

It is ironic that a man who is very openly far from God is who redeems the grandmother. Despite his disconnection from religion, the Misfit is surprisingly polite and mannerly when talking to the grandmother. Practicing manners and being polite is something you would expect from the elderly religious women not the convict, when the opposite is illustrated in the story. From analyzing the conversations between the misfit and the grandmother, it is very evident that the misfit is not impressed with the grandmother’s attitude or pleas after she theatrically tells him that she recognizes him. Since the grandmother picks up on the misfit’s gentleman attitude, she then attempts to use this to her advantage. Kathleen G. Ochshorn’s article “A Cloak of Grace: Contradictions ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find’” analysis’s the dialog between the grandmother and the Misfit, “the grandmother deals with The Misfit by appealing to his gentility. She keeps insisting he is a good man, from good people”. The misfit not at all moved by the grandmother statement simply replies “Nome, I ain’t a good man…but I ain’t the worst in the world neither”. This rebuttal continues throughout the rest of their conversations, demonstrating the difference between the two people. One of the grandmother’s last pleas is that of a religious one. She asks the