A Look at Flannery OConnors A Good Man is Hard to Find In the short story A Good Man is Hard to Find, Flannery OConnor uses many different tactics to accurately portray the south in the 1950s. OConnor uses her style, themes, and point of view to tell a story of a family outing gone wrong. The story involves a grandmother, her only son and his wife, and their two bratty children, June Star and John Wesley. On their way to Florida, the grandmother convinces the family to detour to see an old house, and while heading towards their destination, the car overturns. The much-feared criminal, The Misfit, an escaped murderer, encounters the family, and offers to help them. The Grandmother immediately notices the man as The Misfit, and verbally acknowledges that fact. Youre The Misfit! she said. I recognized you at once! (p. 687) The Misfit has the husband and son killed relatively quickly, and even after much conversation and pleading, he kills the rest of the family.A Good Man is Hard to Find includes a lot of character development, a unique point of view, and the use of foreshadowing. OConnor does this through her characters, setting, and details in the story. The grandmother is a classic old southern woman, who is eccentric and who may come off as a racist. However, the woman may not be racist, but rather just naive and too set in her ways to deal with the changes present at the time. As the grandmother said, Oh look at that cute little pickaninny! Wouldnt that make a picture now? (p. 681) When OConnor was writing she might not have meant to show that the grandmother was a racist, but rather just that she was out of tune with the rest of the world. The grandmother was also portrayed as Christian, one who was displeased with others who did not act in a Christian manner, and with the society as a whole. She discusses this with Red Sammy, a restaurant owner and war veteran. Red Sammy said Everything is getting terrible. I remember the day yo...
