Parmer  

Aimee Parmer

English 1220

Professor Larsen

2-10-03

“A Good Man is Hard to Find”

        A story is written to convey a message, because otherwise, it would serve no purpose.  Sometimes, the author chooses to reveal the message in a straightforward and realistic manner.  Other times, however, the author decides to take a more symbolic approach so that the story's message will be more memorable.  Author Flannery O'Connor was a devout Roman Catholic whose stories often contained religious messages.  In one of her most famous short stories, "A Good Man is Hard to Find," which was first published in 1955, O'Connor uses a popular literary device known as an allegory.    Allegories are a perfect way to explore morality through the symbolic use of characters, language and action.

        In O'Connor's "A Good Man is Hard to Find," a religious allegory is used to determine how good and evil are actually distinguished in the Christian faith.  In the story, a grandmother, along with her son and his family, are embarking on a brief vacation.  Despite the escape of a dangerous murderer from a Florida prison, the grandmother suggests they take a detour to visit an old family homestead, which may be symbolic of a leader being led astray.  The grandmother represents the old-time Christian value system.  She resents the changes in morality, and blames them on the troubles of the world.  While stopped along the road so that the son can change a flat tire, the family is accosted by a group of men whose leader is referred to only as The Misfit.  The stage was set for a classic allegory of good and evil, with the name of The Misfit symbolizing a black sheep who has veered away from the spiritual flock.  While his men are killing her family, one by one, the grandmother is engaging in a dialogue with The Misfit, which sometimes resembles that of a sinner confessing his sins to his priest.  When The Misfit explained, "I never was a bad boy that I remember of... but somewheres along the line I done something wrong and got sent to the penitentiary.  I was buried alive", the grandmother responds, "That's when you should have started to pray... If you would pray... Jesus would help you" .  At this point in the allegory, O'Connor is demonstrating how people often turn to religion during times of trouble.          The Misfit seems to think that his imprisonment has robbed him of any goodness or redeemable characteristics.  In other words, from his perspective, a sinner cannot be redeemed, which is why evil continues to be perpetuated.  Later, The Misfit observes, "I found out the crime don't matter.  You can do one thing or you can do another, kill a man or take a tire off his car, because sooner or later you're going to forget what it was you done and just be punished for it".  Again, The Misfit is suggesting that the judgmental aspects of Christianity contribute to evil because punishment is inevitable, and if redemption is impossible, punishment is no longer a deterrent, but accepted as nothing more than a consequence for an action.

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        Then, the allegory considers whether or not there is an afterlife.  Naturally, the Christian religion has steadfastly maintained that all good souls will be rewarded by being resurrected, just as Jesus was.  The Misfit remarked, "Jesus was the only One that ever raised the dead... I wisht I had of been there... It ain't right I wasn't there because if I had of been there I would of known".  Here is an important key to unlocking the mystery of The Misfit.  For him, seeing is believing.  He has never seen anybody being raised from the dead, so he kills people ...

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