A Good Man is Hard to Find is a Story that communicates a message, otherwise it would be of no use. Although the message is revealed in quite a frank, realistic Manner, lots of symbolism is used in the language of the Story.
In O'Connor's A Good Man is Hard to Find, a religious allegory is used to determine how Good and evil are actually distinguished in the Christian faith. In the Story, a grandmother, along with her son and his family, are embarking on a brief vacati on. Despite the escape of a dangerous murderer from a Florida prison, the grandmother suggests they take a detour to visit an old family homestead, which may be symbolic of a leader being led astray. The grandmother represents the old-time Christian value system. She resents the changes in morality, and blames them on the troubles of the world. While his men are killing her family, one by one, the grandmother is engaging in a dialogue with The Misfit, which sometimes resembles that of a sinner confessing his sins to his priest. When The Misfit explained, I never was a bad boy that I remember of... but somewhere along the line I done something wrong and got sent to the penitentiary. I was buried alive, the grandmother responds, That's when you should have started to pray... If you would pray... Jesus would help you . At this point in the allegory, O'Connor is demonstrating how people often turn to religion during times of trouble. The Misfit seems to think that his imprisonment has robbed him of any Goodness or redeemable characteristics. In other words, from his perspective, a sinner cannot be redeemed, which is why evil continues to be perpetuated. Later, The Misfit observes, I found out the crime don't matter. You can do one thing or you can do another, kill a Man or take a tire off his car, because sooner or later you're going to forget what it was you done and just be punished for it. Again, The Misfit is suggesting that the judgmental aspects of Christianity contribute to evil because punishment is inevitable, and if redemption is impossible, punishment is no longer a deterrent, but accepted as nothing more than a consequence for an action.
There is an interesting shift in A Good Man is Hard to Find, when the grandmother, after hearing the blood-curdling screams of her family members, realizes that she is only moments away from death. Suddenly, it is she who is face to face with the Grim Reaper, and it is she, not the Misfit, who is forced to seek redemption. After all, she is the same woMan who was quick to pass judgment on anything that was foreign to her or seemingly contrary to her beliefs. The grandmother is frequently applying the labels of Good and bad on people, but does she actually know the difference between the two? When she invoked the name of Jesus, as O'Connor wrote, The way she was saying it, it sounded as if she might be cursing. While pleading for her life, she 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.
Suddenly, the grandmother achieves insight, just before death. She sees the error of her judgmental ways, and her attitude toward The Misfit changes. Now, she is not attempting to convert him through prayer, but is moved by compassion toward this troubled soul, in the true spirit of Christian charity. When she reaches out to touch him, just as Jesus did when healing the sick, the grandmother says in a soothing voice, Why, you're one of my babies. You're one of my own children! It is at this moment, when she welcomed the spirit of God into her heart that the grandmother was fatally shot in the chest three times.
At the conclusion of her allegorical tale, Flannery O'Connor implies that there is religious salvation in the end. The grandmother did not achieve this through her Bible-reading or churchgoing, but in an intimate moment of huMan interaction. She had, in the final moments of her life, finally been saved, having, at last, learned the difference between Good and evil, with the suggestion being that this realization only occurs at the moment of death. In a chilling observation, The Misfit noted of the grandmother, She would of been a Good woMan... if it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life.
The article was produced by the member of masterpapers.com. Sharon White has Many years of a vast experience in Essay Writing and custom essays writing consulting. Get free samples of essays and courseworks and buy essays.
Author:: Sharon White
Keywords:: Good, Man, Find, Story
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