A Good Man Is Hard to Find by Flannery O'Connor - Book Report/Review Example

Analysis of short story Flannery OConnor, the American short story is renowned for the usage of Southern Gothic style and morality/ ethics in her works. Within the context of Southern Gothic style, OConnor provided ample importance to horror/grotesque and violence. To be specific, OConnor made use of violence to evoke empathic pity in the minds of the readers. OConnor’s literary life is interconnected with her religious faith, i.e., Roman Catholicism. On the other side, OConnor did not ignore the scope of contemporary issues in the society during her lifetime (say, from 1925 to 1964). The short story named as A Good Man Is Hard to Find is one among the works by Flannery OConnor which deals with self-centeredness of human beings that leads to tragedy and the scope of redemption in the end. In the short story, OConnor unveils the grass root level reason behind the tragedy faced by Bailey and his family. Thesis statement: The character analysis of the grandmother in A Good Man is Hard to Find proves that the character’s her self-centered attitude, capacity to manipulate others, interest in the conduct/ discipline of other characters, complicated relationship with other characters, and interest in religious matters help her to transform/realize her fault in the end, but leads the whole family towards ultimate doom. Character analysis The character analysis section is divided into five: Self-centered attitude, capacity to manipulate others interest in the conduct/ discipline of other characters, complicated relationship with other characters, and interest in religious matters and transformation/ realization of fault in the end. Self-centered attitude: In the short story, the grandmother is portrayed as a self-centered individual, interested in her own happiness and safety. For instance, the grandmother neglects her son’s decision to spend their vacation in Florida. Instead, she forces her son and his family to spend their vacation in Tennessee. The speaker makes clear that, “She wanted to visit some of her connections in east Tennessee and she was seizing every chance to change Bailey’s mind” (97). Besides, she is aware of the fact that her daughter in law does not possess any influence upon her son. So, she cunningly influences her grandchildren and forces her son to act according to her interest. The grass root level reason behind her decision is that she never expects her own death. In addition, she tells the other members of her family about a criminal named as The Misfit, who might be heading to Tennessee. Within this scenario, one may misunderstand that the grandmother is deeply interested in the safety of her family. But, she thought that the criminal may attack her. At the same time, the grandmother is deeply interested in her appearance, especially dressing. The speaker makes clear that, “In case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once that she was a lady”(98). She does not consider that keeping a cat while spending a family vacation is uncomfortable to others. Her self-centeredness is evident in her conversation with others during the trip. For instance, she continuously talks about her past life and never allows others to share their feelings. In the end of the story, she once more reveals her self-centeredness by pleading to the criminals not to kill her. To be specific, she is aware of the fact that all the members of the family are dead. But she pleads to the criminals to let her free. So, one can see that the grandmother’s self-centered attitude is evident in her behavior to other characters in the short story. Capacity to manipulate others: The grandmother is aware of the fact that she can manipulate her son by influencing her grandchildren. She simply ignores her daughter in law because she is busy with her baby. OConnor did not provide name to Bailey’s wife to prove that this character is less important in the short story. If this character is influential, the whole family will not face tragedy in the end. But OConnor consciously ignored this character and provided ample importance to the grandmother. The grandmother’s capacity to manipulate other characters is portrayed in three layers. In the first layer, she is able to manipulate her son. The speaker makes clear that, “She knew that Bailey would not be willing to lose any time looking at an old house, but the more she talked about it, the more she wanted to see it once again and find out if the little twin arbors were still standing” (101). In the second layer, she manipulates her grandchildren by telling stories about her past. In the third layer, she tries to manipulate the criminal, but for no use. But she did not realize the fact that her manipulative power will lead her family towards an accident and tragedy in the end. The speaker makes clear that, “The grandmother was curled up under the dashboard, hoping she was injured so that Bailey’s wrath would not come down on her all at once” (102). In the end, she tries to manipulate the criminals by revealing her faith in God. But the criminals were aware of the fact that the grandmother is the one and only witness of their criminal deed. So, they decide to kill her, by ignoring her final effort to manipulate/influence them by pointing out the importance of redemption. So, one can see that the grandmother’s misuse of influence on others is the reason behind the tragedy. Interest in the conduct/ discipline of other characters: One can easily identify that the grandmother is deeply interested in the conduct/ discipline of other characters in the short story. She tries to be a disciplinarian grandmother to her grandchildren. She is of the opinion that children must obey the elders and treat them with due care and attention. But the real sarcasm is in the fact that her aim is not to guide her grandchildren. Instead, she exploits their childish curiosity and satisfies her selfish motives. Her opinion on the respect towards parents is not an advice for her grandchildren, but towards her son to obey her. From a different angle of view, OConnor allows the grandmother to be interested in the conduct/ discipline of other characters to expose her fear on death and loneliness. In the short story, the grandmother considers that she is a role model to others. Besides, she considers that her grandchildren must learn the lessons on conduct/discipline from her. The grandmother opines that, “Children were more respectful of their native states and their parents and everything else” (98). But she does not realize the fact that she is ruining the happiness of her family. Some of the characters in the short story like Bailey and his wife obey her to reduce the risk of internal problems in their family. But the grandmother considers that all the other members are under her control and they must obey her without any question. Complicated relationship with other characters: The grandmother’s complicated relationship with other characters in the short story is deeply rooted in her attitude towards humanity. She considers the other members of her family as tools to make her life more comfortable. She intrudes into the private affairs of her son’s family. She tries to be a disciplinarian but creates trouble in her son’s family. She loves her son but is jealous of his warm relationship with his wife. She does not try to create a healthy relationship with her daughter in law. For instance, in the short story, Bailey’s wife is nursing her little child, but the grandmother is not interested to help her. On the other side, the grandmother realizes the fact that she can easily influence her grandchildren. But the grandmother does not try to control her grandchildren, but tires to co-operate with their mischievous deeds. In addition, she considers criminals as the personification of sin in the world. She wants to save herself from the criminals but they provide less importance to her request. The speaker makes clear that, “She wanted to tell him that he must pray” (107). So, the grandmother’s complicated relationship with other characters is interconnected with her narrow-minded view on others. Interest in religious matters and transformation/ realization of fault in the end: The grandmother is deeply interested in religious matters, especially in her own salvation. She acts like a religious woman to save herself from worldly troubles. She does not provide importance to others, but shows utmost interest to exhibit herself as a person who is deeply interested in religious matters. For instance, the grandmother’s theological discussion with The Misfit proves that her real aim is to save herself from further troubles. So, one can see that the grandmother exploits religious belief to fulfill her selfish motives. While pleading to the thieves/prisoners, she acts like a religious woman. But The Misfit was aware of the fact that she is trying to exploit his (say, The Misfit’s) religious identity to save herself from death. In the short story, the notorious criminal named as The Misfit opines that, “If it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life” (108). On the other side, she did not try to save her son and his family. In the end, the grandmother came to realize that pretending as a religious woman cannot save one from troubles in real life. To be specific, her transformation from pretension to real faith in God does not save her life. One can see that her tragic end is symbolic of her transformation, but for no use. Summing, OConnor’s short story proves that pretension cannot save an individual from troubles in daily life. Besides, one must be aware of the fact that acting like a religious individual to fulfill one’s selfish motives cannot lead one towards redemption. The grandmother in the short story is the embodiment of selfishness, manipulation and pretension. But this does not help her to be victorious in the end because somebody else was there to teach her the lesson on the difference between pretension and genuine faith in the God. The grandmother was an opportunist who was deeply interested in the conduct/ discipline of other characters. She was not interested to maintain warm relationship with other characters. Her interest in religious matters was to gain importance in her private and public domains. But her attitude towards humanity, added with opportunism, eventually led her family and her towards tragedy in the end. In short, OConnor made use of the character of the grandmother to communicate with the readers and to spread her views on the importance of faith in human life and the end result of self centeredness and opportunism. Works Cited Read More