Flannery O’Connor’s “A Good Man is Hard to Find” argues that negative aspects of human behaviour can influence an individual’s perception and cloud the true meaning of a “good man” (O’Connor 94). Initially, the grandmother appears to be “lady” (O’Connor 92) with moral principles. However, a closer analysis of the story’s characterization and diction suggests the grandmother is not actually as she may appear. Displays of selfishness, moral superiority and racism contradict the behaviour of a “lady” (O’Connor 92) and prevent the grandmother from being recognized with this title. O’Connor’s literary techniques such as irony, imagery and foreshadowing lead to the development of the grandmother’s character and suggest there is “no pleasure but
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The grandmother clothes herself in a “navy blue dress with a small white dot in the print (O’Connor 92). Her clothing symbolizes her opinion of being an ethical and honorable woman. Along with her colorful clothing, she describes her surroundings as being “blue granite” (O’Connor 92) with “brilliant red clay banks” (O’Connor 92). However, When Hiram and Bobby Lee take Bailey 's wife, the baby, and June Star to the woods, all of the brightness disappears from her surroundings. She is surrounded by dirt roads and “woods [that] gaped like a dark open mouth” (O’Connor 98). The grandmother realizes that the Misfit’s dark soul is similar to her own. Although she is not a murder, she has committed many sins and cannot be seen as a lady. The grandmother is an “exemplar of all the moral and social deficiencies in the old South” (Edgercombe 69). Her belief in being superior to everyone else showcases this quality and when altered leaves her in a world of darkness. The grandmother like the “cloudless sky” (O’Connor 101) is empty and she no longer can see herself an honorable woman. She is just another human being like everyone else and cannot consider herself superior to even the murderous Misfit. She has spent her whole life building up an image and in her last moments in life, she accepts her true …show more content…
For instance, she wears a “blue straw sailor hat” (O’Connor 91) to signify her lady-like demeanor. The grandmother is only concerned with her own physical appearance and disregards the safety and well being of her family. The hearse-like vehicle that approaches the family after the car crash and the grandmother’s elegant attire similar to the wardrobe worn at a funeral foreshadows her and her family’s death. Her only concern is standing as a lady and “anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know . . . she was a lady” (O’Connor 92). However, when the grandmother becomes involved in the car accident, her hat like her moral beliefs fall apart, she drops the hat and her belief in being a lady vanishes. The grandmother initially has no self-awareness and forces her moral superiority upon others. She believes she has the right to judge others, but in her last moments of life recognizes the Misfit as “one of [her] babies” (O’Connor 193). She acknowledges the faults in herself and sees the similarities between herself and the Misfit. The grandmother now realizes she is not the lady she has depicted herself as and is just another human being. Furthermore, the grandmother reaches out and touches the Misfit addressing that “she and the Misfit are spiritually kin” (Clark
The grandmother clothes herself in a “navy blue dress with a small white dot in the print (O’Connor 92). Her clothing symbolizes her opinion of being an ethical and honorable woman. Along with her colorful clothing, she describes her surroundings as being “blue granite” (O’Connor 92) with “brilliant red clay banks” (O’Connor 92). However, When Hiram and Bobby Lee take Bailey 's wife, the baby, and June Star to the woods, all of the brightness disappears from her surroundings. She is surrounded by dirt roads and “woods [that] gaped like a dark open mouth” (O’Connor 98). The grandmother realizes that the Misfit’s dark soul is similar to her own. Although she is not a murder, she has committed many sins and cannot be seen as a lady. The grandmother is an “exemplar of all the moral and social deficiencies in the old South” (Edgercombe 69). Her belief in being superior to everyone else showcases this quality and when altered leaves her in a world of darkness. The grandmother like the “cloudless sky” (O’Connor 101) is empty and she no longer can see herself an honorable woman. She is just another human being like everyone else and cannot consider herself superior to even the murderous Misfit. She has spent her whole life building up an image and in her last moments in life, she accepts her true …show more content…
For instance, she wears a “blue straw sailor hat” (O’Connor 91) to signify her lady-like demeanor. The grandmother is only concerned with her own physical appearance and disregards the safety and well being of her family. The hearse-like vehicle that approaches the family after the car crash and the grandmother’s elegant attire similar to the wardrobe worn at a funeral foreshadows her and her family’s death. Her only concern is standing as a lady and “anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know . . . she was a lady” (O’Connor 92). However, when the grandmother becomes involved in the car accident, her hat like her moral beliefs fall apart, she drops the hat and her belief in being a lady vanishes. The grandmother initially has no self-awareness and forces her moral superiority upon others. She believes she has the right to judge others, but in her last moments of life recognizes the Misfit as “one of [her] babies” (O’Connor 193). She acknowledges the faults in herself and sees the similarities between herself and the Misfit. The grandmother now realizes she is not the lady she has depicted herself as and is just another human being. Furthermore, the grandmother reaches out and touches the Misfit addressing that “she and the Misfit are spiritually kin” (Clark