A Good Man Is Hard to Find: Flannery OConnor - Essay Example

(Assignment) ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find Flannery O’Connor The story reveals how ones selfishness and reluctance to accept ones limitations can lead to the ruin of not only ones own, but also many people around them. This is the basic ideology evident in the story ‘A Good Man Is Hard to Find’ written by Flannery O’Connor. The story narrates how a family is devastated when an old lady resorts to fulfilling her own interests through deceitful means. The three character traits of the grandmother in the story are selfishness, thoughtlessness, and dishonesty.

The first and the most evident character trait in the grandmother is her selfishness. For example, she goes on nagging her son Bailey and all other people in the family saying that they should go to Tennessee instead of Florida. Though it is her self-interest to go there, she says “I would not take my children in any direction with a criminal like that…” (1). When she reaches the children’s mother, the reason changes. This time, the reason is that children would get a chance to see different places.

Even her grandchildren seem totally aware about her selfish nature, and they opine that “Afraid she’d miss something” (2). Another point where her selfish motives make her lie is when she remembers the old house she wanted to see. As she knows very well that no one is going to agree with her, she resorts to lying. To capture the hearts of children, she says that “There was a secret panel in this house” (9). It is very clear that her intention is to take advantage of the children’s love for fiction, and she succeeds in the attempt.

The third but the most evident point that reveals the depth of her selfishness is the repetition of the question “You wouldn’t shoot a lady, would you?” (15). Even at that later stage of life, her only interest is in saving her own life. She does not seem concerned about the lives of even the grandchildren. The second vice in her, and probably the most fatal one for the family, is her thoughtlessness. The first instance of this insensitivity comes when she makes the family go to the wrong place to see the house she wants to see.

However, she forgets the fact that the house is in Tennessee. The next example of this thoughtlessness appears when she says aloud “You’re the Misfit! I recognized you at once!” (14). It is this statement that she makes without the slightest hint of commonsense that leads to the death of all. In the words of Misfit, “it would have been better for all of you, lady, if you hadn’t of reckernized me”(14). The third point that shows her thoughtlessness is her reaction when Bailey tells her the consequences of her revelation.

She immediately starts crying, and at the very next moment, finds solace in the belief that he ‘wouldn’t shoot a lady’, and wipes her tears. Even at that moment of time, she is unable to get a complete picture of the direness of the situation. The third trait of consideration is her dishonesty that is evident throughout the story. The first instance can be seen in her statement “I wouldn’t take my children in any direction with a criminal like that…I couldn’t answer to my conscience if I did” (1).

It is very evident that the only motivation behind this statement is her desire to go to Tennessee instead of Florida. In fact, she possesses little concern for the lives of others as it is revealed at the end of the story. When their lives are at stake, she only wants to ensure that ‘you would not shoot a lady’. Another point that reveals her dishonesty is her vehement attempt to persuade the children to go to the house she wants to see by saying “There was a secret panel in this house” (9).

As the story progresses, one gets a better idea about the depth of her dishonesty. When she smells danger in the hands of Misfit, she immediately starts praising him, declaring “I know you’re a good man. You don’t look a bit like you have common blood. I know you must come from nice people” (15). Even at the last moment where she becomes sure of her imminent death, she is not ready to give up her dishonesty. To the criminal who has shot her whole family dead, she says “you’re one of my babies.

You’re one of my own children.” (22). In total, it becomes evident that the grandmother is the sole reason behind the tragic fate of the family. Her only consideration is her own comforts and her own life, and nothing else bothers her. What one can perceive from the story is that selfishness is a curse to be controlled. Otherwise, it can lead to the ruin of our lives. In addition, the story tells the reality that one should know ones position. Trying to achieve what one does not deserve will make one look ridiculous in the eyes of others.

Works Cited O’Connor, Flannery. A Good Man Is Hard to Find and Other Stories. US: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1992. Print. In my analysis of Miss Emily, she is demanding, undermining and disconnected. While the first two traits were the relics of her aristocratic ancestry, the third one was the result of the conflicts between her own human desires and the need to uphold the aforesaid values. When Emily goes to the store and says “I want some poison” “I want the best you have. I don’t care what kind.

” (Faulkner, 82) This gives me the impression that she was very demanding, crazy and that she did things her way especially given the fact that she refused to offer an answer for what she needed the poison for. I also think that Miss Emily tends to undermine people regardless of their positions. For example, when the alderman asks her if she received a notice from the Sheriff in regard to the defaulted taxes, she replies "I received a paper yes,” "Perhaps he considers himself a sheriff..I have no taxes in Jefferson.

"(Faulkner, 80) Finally, Miss Emily must be leaving in a world so disconnected from the real Jefferson world as seen when she says to the city authority men "See Colonel Sartoris. I have no taxes in Jefferson." Thus, in total, it becomes evident that she was a lady preoccupied with the power she was used to, being an aristocrat herself. However, she herself became the victim of the high social esteem she had to uphold, and this made her mad at the end. In other words, the need for love and care is not the same in all human beings.

A total denial of these can lead people to insanity.