The Traditional Big Bad Wolf
If someone was asked to list their favorite stories of all time, there is a good chance that it would include an archetypal "big bad wolf." Throughout history writers have used the concept of a central antagonist that has displayed the same general characteristics consistently. It has become iconic in literature for quality stories to include the "big bad wolf" as a main character. Flannery O'Connor, like a lot of writers, used this same archetypal "big bad wolf" in A Good Man is Hard to Find. In O'Connor's short story she uses The Misfit, an escaped convict who is heading towards Florida with two henchmen. O'Connor describes The Misfit by saying he is an escaped convict, has rather simple accomplices, and has …show more content…
Traditionally in stories of good versus evil the "big bad wolf" has a soft side for a woman or some sort of past event that has scarred them severely. It is normal in society for someone to have a unique event or person in he or she's life that when discussed or brought to light triggers a special emotion not known to the readers before. In O'Connor's story, readers are not directly informed of The Misfit's entire past, but are given small pieces from time to time. The story reveals that The Misfit had been incarcerated for so long that he had become institutionalized and forgotten what he had even done to get there. This sends a strong message to readers of The Misfit's mental instability. The story also shines light on the fact that The Misfit isn't religious at all. There is a conversation between he and the grandmother in which he becomes distressed and punches the ground. This is another good indication of The Misfit's instability and shadowed past. At the end of the story O'Connor shocks readers when she says, "She reached out and touched him on the shoulder. The Misfit sprang back as if a snake had bitten him and shot her three times through the chest. Then he put his gun down on the ground and took off his glasses and began to clean them" (13). Although the reason for this action is not broken down in the text, it is understood that The Misfit had a very …show more content…
The way O'Connor portrays The Misfit in this story is a dark, cynical character with a past of incarceration who has simple accomplices to handle his dirty work and like the traditional bad guy has an emotional side often covered up. All of these elements mixed together with the addition of the "good guy" family is what makes The Misfit the archetypal "big bad wolf" in Flannery O'Connor's A Good Man is Hard to
If someone was asked to list their favorite stories of all time, there is a good chance that it would include an archetypal "big bad wolf." Throughout history writers have used the concept of a central antagonist that has displayed the same general characteristics consistently. It has become iconic in literature for quality stories to include the "big bad wolf" as a main character. Flannery O'Connor, like a lot of writers, used this same archetypal "big bad wolf" in A Good Man is Hard to Find. In O'Connor's short story she uses The Misfit, an escaped convict who is heading towards Florida with two henchmen. O'Connor describes The Misfit by saying he is an escaped convict, has rather simple accomplices, and has …show more content…
Traditionally in stories of good versus evil the "big bad wolf" has a soft side for a woman or some sort of past event that has scarred them severely. It is normal in society for someone to have a unique event or person in he or she's life that when discussed or brought to light triggers a special emotion not known to the readers before. In O'Connor's story, readers are not directly informed of The Misfit's entire past, but are given small pieces from time to time. The story reveals that The Misfit had been incarcerated for so long that he had become institutionalized and forgotten what he had even done to get there. This sends a strong message to readers of The Misfit's mental instability. The story also shines light on the fact that The Misfit isn't religious at all. There is a conversation between he and the grandmother in which he becomes distressed and punches the ground. This is another good indication of The Misfit's instability and shadowed past. At the end of the story O'Connor shocks readers when she says, "She reached out and touched him on the shoulder. The Misfit sprang back as if a snake had bitten him and shot her three times through the chest. Then he put his gun down on the ground and took off his glasses and began to clean them" (13). Although the reason for this action is not broken down in the text, it is understood that The Misfit had a very …show more content…
The way O'Connor portrays The Misfit in this story is a dark, cynical character with a past of incarceration who has simple accomplices to handle his dirty work and like the traditional bad guy has an emotional side often covered up. All of these elements mixed together with the addition of the "good guy" family is what makes The Misfit the archetypal "big bad wolf" in Flannery O'Connor's A Good Man is Hard to