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A Good Man Is Hard to Find

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A Good Man Is Hard to Find
A Good Man is Hard to Find

Flannery O’Connor’s story, A Good Man is Hard to Find, brings a story in which she connects her experience as a victim of lupus erythematosus with her writings. The story begins with an ordinary family that embarks on a journey that becomes the last of their lives as the journey approaches to an end, as well as their imminent death, yet something astounding happens with the main character. The main character, the Grandmother, changes her heart by the cruel ways of the “Misfit”, who is a criminal that escaped from the penitentiary. One might think that Grandmothers are sweet and loving, and often innocent due to their advanced age and condition. We, as society, think of them as great examples of people that radiate love, mentors, and defenders of morality and good manners. However, this is not the case in A Good Man Is Hard to Find, by Flannery O’Connor. As the story unfolds, her personality reflects that hidden evil we all carry inside and how detouring on a route takes a whole family to face disastrous consequences, yet one person finds redemption from that evil. A Good Man Is Hard to Find is a story that symbolizes redemption, because there is a sinner, there is a journey, and there is redemption.
In our society we tend to minimize, and sometimes erase the word “sin” because, for the most part, it bothers people’s conscience. Although the word “sin” is not explicitly exposed in the story A Good Man is Hard to Find, the action and consequences of sin are vividly present throughout the story, in all the characters, especially the Grandmother. The main character and sinner in the story is the Grandmother because she is described as an egocentric person, since the situation they face is that they are all captives of the serial killer, “The Misfit”, and she bargains for her life only. The grandmother said, “You wouldn’t shoot a lady, would you?” (Flannery O’Connor 313). This is an obvious example of how she doesn’t stop to think about

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