Flannery O'Connor and the Use of the Grotesque

Flannery O’Connor and the Use of the Grotesque Much of Flannery O’Connor’s writing revolves around themes of redemption, the concept or grace, or a character’s view of the world being challenged. Often O’Connor uses extreme violence or the grotesque in her stories to provide her characters these challenges; which is interesting considering her strong religious beliefs. The stories “A Good Man is Hard to Find” and “Everything That Rises Must Converge”, for example, make similar uses of literary elements to convey a similar theme. O’Connor uses both symbolism and characterization in “A Good Man is Hard to Find” to show that all people are capable of redemptive acts, though a shocking or violent act may be needed for them to do so. O’Connor delves deeply into her characters to effectively advance the ideas in her stories. Of the characters in “A Good Man is Hard to Find” the most thoroughly developed is the Grandmother. At the story’s beginning everything about her character speaks of both superficiality and selfishness. Above all what matters most to the Grandmother is her outward appearance. For example before leaving on the road trip the Grandmother is described as dressing very neatly so that “In case of an accident anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know she was a lady” (O’Connor, “A Good Man” 374). Similarly she chides her grandchildren for not showing respect for their home state. When speaking with Red Sam she discusses how hard it has become to find a good man, revealing her idealistic views of the past. The Grandmother's entire conversation with Red Sammy is telling of her character. Their entire conversation of what constitutes a good man provides the story’s title and reveals some of the Grandmother’s beliefs. Her idealistic idea of what a good man is challenged when she meets the Misfit, whom she insists is good. Whether from her attempts to save her life or what she truly thinks, the Grandmother’s contention that the Misfit is good is

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