A Good Man Is Hard to Find
The subject of the story revolves around the understanding of good and evil. The characters through their actions and how they respond to the actions of others help in showing the different facets of both good and evil within the society. The grandmother, in this case, best encapsulates the perception of material wealth as being good. This is shown in her narration of how she failed to marry Mr Teargarden (O'Connor 89). She contends that he was a good man given that he died a rich man and having purchased Coca-Cola stock. This presumption of being good on the basis of material wealth is also supported June Star. On the other hand, the Misfit represents evil whereby his contact with the family results in death. The story reveals his lack of sense in distinguishing between what is right and wrong meaning that any punishment directed towards him would have little to no impact on his personality.
2) The portrayal of human beings in the story takes different forms depending on the characters in question. The characterization of human personalities exists between the grandmother and the Misfit. While the grandmother believes in being good as an indication of virtuous living, her understanding is fundamentally flawed. Her attempts towards ensuring that she appears good to others clouds her judgement on what it really means to be good in the overall sense of coexisting in a dynamic society. Her selfish nature can be seen in her insistence through the kids to visiting the plantation which results in a change in their planned trip and ultimately their fate. This is a portrayal of fragility in humanity where self-centeredness appears to be the route of all decisions undertaken. The grandmother also dresses up in the hope that if they encounter an accident on the highway, she will be seen as a lady (12).
The story also portrays the selfish nature of human beings through the actions of the Misfit and his friends when they meet the family. After the car accident, the grandmother moves onto the road to look for any oncoming vehicles that might offer help. Finally, she spots a hearse looking van which she flags down. However, to their disbelief, the occupants of the vehicle are the Misfit and his two friends. The grandmother recognizes the Misfit who decides that for this reason, the family has to be killed (89). While her fears of the Misfit who is a convicted escapee come true, her actions can be blamed for the fate that befalls other family members. Moreover, the Misfit views himself as heroic given his philosophical understanding of what life entails and the challenges he has been able to overcome since his wrongful conviction.
3) The author portrays the different characters in a manner that best suits their personalities as the story develops. The adults react similarly as would be expected of them while the children behave in a manner similar to expectations. The grandmother tries to keep the children entertained throughout the trip by telling stories. This is typical behaviour of most grandmothers when in the presence of their grandchildren. The adults are not so impressed mainly because either they have heard the stories countless of times before or simply because they are beyond being excited of such. However, the children act in a typical fashion whereby after listening to a story by their grandmother concerning the plantation, they insist that their father drives them to see it (O'Connor 45). This is typical behaviour likely to be expressed by children given their inquisitive nature. Moreover, it is the presumption that by visiting the plantation the family trip would be much more enjoyable.
Among the negative qualities that the author shows in the characters includes hypocrisy. After the encounter, a conversation between the grandmother and the Misfit illustrates the hypocritical nature of the grandmother. She tries extensively to convince him that he is a good man in the hope that he would spare her life (37). However, right before they commenced on the trip, she was worried of the escaped convicts and what harm they would inflict on the family if they ever met. The Misfit does not believe she is sincere and reiterates that he is not a good man and thus should not be presumed as one. Right at that moment, he orders the remaining members of the family to be taken into the bushes and be murdered. There is little redemption for the grandmother as she gets shot while trying to reach out to the Misfit (148). Moreover, given the flawed understanding of his actions, the Misfit too is beyond redemption.
4) The author uses the characters to illustrate underlying elements of the society. This can be seen in the grandmother who indicates that a lady should dress in a particular manner in order to be presumed presentable. She also reiterates of the days when kids would respond politely towards elder people and the level of trust was high (O'Connor 72). This illustrates that the society has changed over the years whereby, the children are no longer as polite as they used to be during her time. The people too have become less trustworthy which can be presumed true given the ensuing encounter with the Misfit (43). The grandmother also uses the word ni**er in reference to black families as they proceed with their trip. This derogatory term is used to show the inferior perception of blacks within the community during the time. The society can thus be considered as life-destroying, as the progression has been from good to worse.
The characters such as the Misfit are in great conflict with the society. One of the tenets of social coexistence is that for each mistake there has to be an equal punishment. However, he reiterates that he was wrongfully convicted hence his punishment was unwarranted (72). This continues to influence his philosophical understanding on the ineffectiveness of any punishment that may be directed to him due to his actions. This conflict of understanding means that he shows little reluctance in murdering an entire family for the reason that he has been recognized. The Misfit thus feels as if he is trapped in a system that does not recognize the reality of life as per his understanding. However, he believes he would have been a different person if he had witnessed Jesus which indicates the possibility of him being a believer.
5) The characters in this story have varying degrees of control in their lives. For example, the grandmother is tied down by the pressure to always appear as a respectable lady within the society. This includes during the moment of her death which she still insists that she would like to be noticed as a lady. This helps to indicate the challenges that people have to endure in order to conform to societal expectations where feminine and masculine behavioural tendencies are used as an indicator of an individual’s personality.
While social influences have an impact on most of the characters, some of the outcomes are merely a case of fate. One instance of fate is shown by the sequence of events as the accident happens. The grandmother brings the cat along hidden in a basket and spooks it while she realizes that the plantation is actually in Tennessee. The cat jumps onto Bailey’s shoulder causing him to lose control and the car overturns (O'Connor 65). If she had not brought the cat along, this would not have happened. Ironically, only the cat survives the ordeal as all members of the family are murdered. However, the Misfit and his friends are to blame for their actions given that they had the chance of sparing the lives of the family members but still proceeded with the murders.
6) The grandmother serves as the moral center of the story. This emanates from the fact that her decisions and actions are used to bring about the contrasting sides of an individuals social life and their pursuit of fitting in. It is necessary to have a character who serves as the moral center as this helps in the development of values observable in the story. Being a work of fiction, the character who serves as the moral center helps readers to form a correlation between the fictional world and reality. This is attained through a continued process of analyzing their actions from the beginning to the end and how each affects other characters. Moreover, this ensures that a consistent theme can be employed throughout the fictional piece given the moral values of the character.
One of the values that the grandmother embodies as the moral center includes the pursuit of being good and virtuous within the society. She reiterates that there is lack of respect towards the elderly by the young people (O'Connor 72). In addition, she laments that the society has also become too lacking in trust that she no longer feels safe (43). Moreover, she believes she is a perfect example of what it means to be a lady something that she hopes to maintain even during the time of her death by acts such as ensuring that she is clothed suitably. Her view concerning others in the society such as the blacks also further helps to illustrate the moral standing of the community at the time. Her effect and belief in being good is best illustrated by the reaction of the Misfit after he shoots her dead where he postulates that she would have been a good woman.
7) The story presents a number of conflicts shown by the interactions of various individuals. Religion is one of the conflicting factors that the readers encounter. This is seen in the confrontation between the Misfit and the grandmother where she tries to use prayers as a way of influencing the Misfit to spare her life (O'Connor 107). While he does not outrightly deny the possibility of his religious leaning, he reiterates that he has a better understanding of what Christianity represents. According to him, he still has doubts about the existence of Jesus which informs his understanding of there being no right or wrong action and that life is meaningless. This is in direct contrast to what the grandmother vehemently believes in which also explains why the Misfit shoots her dead when she reaches out.
Another conflict that is presented in the story includes the understanding of good and evil. While the Misfit expresses a lack of conscience thus his actions, the way he murders the family does not indicate any possibility of his innocence from allegations that he murdered his father (113). The way he approaches the murders is akin to someone already used to committing crimes of that nature. The conflict is further displayed by his belief that while there is no basis for judging whether the deaths are wrong, it was wrong for him to have been placed in jail. This indicates that the Misfit understands the concept of what is wrong or right but finds committing wrongs pleasurable. This understanding ultimately contributes to the murders of the grandmother and her family.