A Good Man Is Hard To Find Critical Essay

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The short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” is written by Flannery O’Connor and published in 1953. “A Good Man is Hard to Find” has become one of O’Connor’s most highly advertised short fiction works because it displays all the characteristics for which she is best known. This short story has a contrast of violent fiction with characters that were drawn humorously and carefully and also a philosophy that underlines O’Connor’s devoted Roman Catholic faith. “A Good Man is Hard to Find” serves as the introduction to the rest of her fiction, this is because it is the title of her first short story collection. This short story is amusing and also disturbing at the same time, which makes it interesting and is a quality that appears in many of her other works. The beginning of the short story “A good Man is Hard to Find” introduces us to a not so appealing family: an arrogant and manipulative grandmother, her antisocial son Bailey, Bailey’s wife and baby, and their complicated children, John Wesley and June Star. The…show more content…
I believe that foreshadowing is used in “They passed a large cotton field with five or six graves fenced in the middle of it, like a small island” (O’Connor 377), not only were there six graves but there were also six members in the family, and six graves to be dug at the end of the short story. Also, an example of irony from the story would be the grandmother dressing up nicely all the time so “In case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once that she was a lady” (O’Connor 377). I find that that line is ironic because she actually ends up dead at the end of the story, and also her definition of being a lady or goodness is not defined by her wealth or appearance. This short story contains many literary devices, which overall makes it a more interesting and complex
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