Flannery OConnors A Good Man Is Hard to Find - Essay Example

Of Irony in “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” and “A Rose for Emily” Introduction Flannery O’Connor’s “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” and William Faulkner’s“A Rose for Emily” substantially utilize the element of irony. By and large, the two stories heavily use the situational type of irony. This irony is basically defined as a type of irony in which the situation in the story or literary piece turns out to be different than what was initially expected. In spite of similarity of using situational irony, nevertheless, the two stories greatly vary in two aspects: the direction of the criticism and the order of timing. This essay compares and contrasts the element of irony utilized in O’Connor’s and Faulkner’s short stories. Ironic Grandmother At the beginning of O’Connor’s story, the grandmother -- who is the protagonist -- is widely portrayed as a good and virtuous Christian woman. She tells her grandchildren, for instance, of the by-gone era (i.e., her time) in which the children were more respectful to the old people. The grandmother implies two things: (1) she was good to her old folks back in younger days; and (2) as an old woman, she wants her grandchildren to be nice to her. The apparent irony here is that the grandmother never speaks any truth unless she profits from it. The grandmother’s utterance -- including the meaning of respect for old people -- is merely a way of realizing her personal fancy. Upon remembering the six-column house and an avenue of oaks, for example, the protagonist invents a fantastic story (e.g., secret panel, hidden silver) for her grandchildren so that they could ask their father, who drives the car, to visit the place. The grandmother deliberately deceives her son, daughter-in-law, and grandchildren merely to get what she wants; she is utterly manipulative. This is the irony of the story: the difference between what is understood involving the grandmother’s pious character and what is really meant in the story. Ironic Townspeople In “A Rose for Emily,” the townspeople believes that Emily Grierson, a prominent citizen of Mississippi, is about to be married to Homer Barron, an engineer. The people of Jefferson perceive that Emily and Homer have intimate relationship, believing that they both love each other. The irony here is that what was expected by the townspeople did not actually occur. First, Homer is depicted as a homosexual; the engineer admits that he likes men and drinks with the “younger men in the Elks’ Club” (Faulkner 705). In this episode, readers critically doubt about the feelings that Homer really has for Emily. And second, Emily kills the engineer through poising. After Homer’s return to Emily’s house, the townspeople never saw him again. Thus, the people of Mississippi are wrong about their perception towards the marriage of Emily and Homer. The irony in the story, however, goes beyond the supposedly engagement of Grierson and Barron. The irony is more striking in the sharp contrast between the townspeople’s deep concern for Emily and their sheer negligence to her personal well-being. In Comparison The type of irony significantly utilized for the two stories is a situational irony. One cannot easily grasp the apparent irony in the story until he or she reads the whole piece of the narrative. In general, a reader essentially grapples the twist of the narrative at the end of the story. At the beginning of the story, one learns something about the nature of the character; but as the story unfolds, he or she begins to realize that the assumed expectation runs counter to the original and true meaning of the story’ theme. The story’s initial narration informs a reader that the characters in “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” and in “A Rose for Emily” are virtuous and conservative. The grandmother and Emily Grierson substantially share common character or attitude: these women highly value the historical and/or personal past. The grandmother cherishes the good old days -- e.g., children were more respectful to old folks (O’Connor 34) -- and Emily esteems the deeds of the olden time -- e.g., tax remittance served by Sartoris (Faulkner 700). At the end, though, the true characters of these two protagonists are subtly exposed with shocking revelation. In Contrast Despite the similarity of the type of irony, the two stories considerably delivered their ironies in a different manner. First, the direction of the story’s attack is sharply different. For one thing, the irony in O’Connor’s story subtly criticizes its main protagonist, the grandmother; in Faulkner’s story, on the other hand, the fine criticism is deliberately thrown against the narrator itself, the townspeople. Unlike O’Connor’s narrative, Faulkner’s generally attacks the people of Mississippi for their gross negligence of Emily’s inner thought and feeling. The townspeople notably create an imaginary picture of Emily Grierson that is very contradictory to the woman-protagonist’s true mind and heart; the society of which Emily lives with collectively stop the protagonist from exploring her own potential. And second, time reference is starkly different in contrasting the two stories. In “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” the time sequence of the narrative is evidently continuous and successive. In “A Rose for Emily,” the story’s time frame significantly shifts from time to time. The shifting of time in the narrative largely contributes to its situational aspect of irony. Conclusion It is true that O’Connor’s and Faulkner’s stories substantially utilize similar type of irony -- namely, situational irony -- nevertheless, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” and “A Rose for Emily” essentially present their narratives in a different order and directed criticism. With respect to criticism, O’Connor’s story is very clear and explicit while Faulkner’s is quite subtle and implicit. Basically, the element of irony is always employed for the purpose of attacking, in a subtle manner, a person’s or a group’s particular belief, values, and systems. In contrast to O’Connor, Faulkner’s use of irony is remarkable, if not surprising, for his story criticizes the reader via the utilization of a third-person narrative. Works Cited Faulkner, William. “A Rose for Emily.” This America. Eds. John D. Kern and Irwin Griggs. New York: Macmillan, 1942. 699-708. Print. O’Connor, Flannery. “A Good Man Is Hard to Find.” A Good Man Is Hard to Find. Ed. Frederick Asals. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers, 1993. 31-51. Print. Read More