Preview

A Good Man Is Hard to Find and Complete Sentences

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
313 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
A Good Man Is Hard to Find and Complete Sentences
“A Good Man Is Hard To Find”, Flannery O’Connor: A Case Study
DIRECTIONS: Read each sub-set of directions and answer all questions, using text evidence when necessary. Answer all questions in complete sentences, unless directly stated.
SECTION I: INTERPRETATION OF VARIOUS SYMBOLS – Use the assigned symbols listed below. Choose one sentence from the text where the symbol is effectively employed. Last, briefly explain the function of the symbol in the text.
SYMBOL
Where is this symbol used in the text?
What is the function of this symbol? What does it represent in “A Good Man Is Hard To Find?”

GUN

WOODS

CAT
(Pitty Sing)

DIRT ROAD

Grandma’s
HAT

The HOUSE with the secret panel

SECTION II: DISCUSSION QUESTIONS – Answer the following questions in complete sentences. Use text evidence to answer when necessary. Answers should be 3-5 sentences in length.
1. During the conversation at the barbecue restaurant, Grandmother and Red Sammy discuss the difficulty of finding a “good man” in this world. How does their discussion relate to the larger discussion of good versus evil in this story?

2. Why do the murders of the Grandmother’s family members take place “offstage”, out in the woods? Does this heighten the effect of the violence in this story?

3. In an essay titled, “The Reasonable Use of the Unreasonable”, O’Connor argues that The Misfit is more intelligent than the Grandmother. She also argues that his “capacity for grace” is greater than hers. Do you agree or disagree? Why or why not?

SECTION III: LOCATING FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE – In “A Good Man Is Hard To Find”, locate at least seven (7) examples of figurative language. Write the statement, label the type, and explain the function of the figurative language within the story.
Figurative Language Example (Pg #)
Type?
What is the function of this figurative

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Nancy Nester’s “O’Connor’s A Good Man is Hard to Find” construes that it is “Bailey whose “goodness” accrues throughout the story, that it may be Bailey, in fact, whose goodness the grandmother affirms at its climax.” She believes that Bailey is a “good but overlooked man” in the story. She denotes the numerous instances, which were often ignored by other critics, Bailey symbolizes or acts as the one piece of good represented throughout the story.…

    • 361 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor, a family plans a vacation to Florida, in which it does not turn out as they had expected. The story begins with a family from Georgia consisting of the father Bailey, his wife, baby, two kids John Wesley and June Star, and their grandmother whose name is never announced. Among planning their trip to Florida, the Grandmother suggest they go elsewhere, justifying herself saying that there is a misfit on the loose and he’s heading that direction. The rest of the family does not take her suggestion seriously, and so the next day they all leave for Florida, including the grandmother. The grandmother makes the decision to bring her cat along for the trip as well while not telling any of the other family. During the trip, the grandmother tells the children stories and plays games with…

    • 1307 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There are several figures of speech represented throughout O’Conner’s short story. Most of which all detail grotesque and unflattering visuals of character's descriptions. For instance, John Wesley's description of how “Tennessee is just a hillbilly dumping ground” provides the audience not only Wesley’s prior opinion of Tennessee, where the grandmother would rather go, it also foreshadows the disturbing events to come. In addition to this, Misfit’s…

    • 975 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Reading Tasks: Phase 1: Introduction p.1-6 “Reading Fiction Responsively,” p. 11 - 12 (paragraphs 1-3) “Love in L.A.” by Dagoberto Gilb, p. 275-279 “A Study of Flannery O’Connor,” pp. 245-249 “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor, p. 249-261 Sample Paper p. 18-20 Phase 2: “Saving Sourdi” by May-Lee Chai, p. 81-96 “Battle Royal,” by Ralph Ellison, p. 179-192 “The Birthmark” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, p. 303-316 Plot p.43-51 Character p.76-77 Phase 3: “Dog's Death" by John Updike, p. 340-341 "The World is Too Much with Us" by William Wordsworth, p. 491 “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”…

    • 302 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    For instance during this conversation she exclaims, "Jesus!" the old lady cried. "You've got good blood! I know you wouldn't shoot a lady! I know you come from nice people! Pray! Jesus, you ought not to shoot a lady. I'll give you all the money I've got!" (O’Connor 715). The reader begins to feel as though this is just simply a poor old woman on the verge of a breakdown. Finally the use of actions to determine the Misfit’s characterization is very different from the rest of the characters. Stephen Bandy in his article "`One of My Babies': The Misfit and the Grandmother" states that “Although the Misfit is not physically present until the final pages, his influence hangs over the story almost from the beginning” (Bandy 107). The reader knows the misfit is not a “good man” by what the grandmother reads from the newspaper in the beginning of the story and also what is discussed throughout. This is also supported by the action of the Misfit having the whole family killed after the accident happened. However, at the end of the story we get a glimpse the opposite through the misfit’s actions. Margaret Earley Whitt, in her book Understanding Flannery O’Connor describes the Misfit’s…

    • 1982 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the literary piece “A Good Man is Hard to Find” the author, Flannery O’Connor communicates literary symbols, foreshadowing, denouement and prominence of Southern culture. Within the story, there are subtle yet important details that make the entirety of the piece as iconic as it is. The reoccurring theme of being a lady and moral codes both are important to the overall concept of the story.…

    • 1069 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    1. In the short story, A Good Man is Hard to Find, the characters portrayal gives the grandmother a special quality. Bailey, the grandmother’s son, is a hardnosed man that seems to be gripey and annoyed with his self centered mother at most times. He makes the grandmother seem needy and pesters him. For example when the grandmother asks him to make a pit stop at the house, “Bailey looks straight ahead. His jaw bone was as rigid as a horseshoe. “No,” he said.” (par.49) Both of the children, John Wesley and June Star, are obnoxious rowdy children that seem to not know respect or manners in any case. The way June Star refers to Red Sammy’s as a “broken down place” and is rude to Sammy’s wife, is just an example. (par. 31) I think that all of the characters help show how self centered and manipulative the grandmother really is. While getting dressed, the grandmother gets dressed to the hilt so if there were an accident, “anyone seeing her on the highway would know at once that she was a lady.” (par. 12) The Misfit is a mean and ruthless convict that will take anything into his own hands. The way he interacts with the grandmother makes me think that she is even more selfish. The grandmother pleads for her own safety and her life as the rest of the family is killed. All of the family and the Misfit help paint the picture of the grandmother’s character in their own way. Overall, I think that the grandmother is a selfish, self-centered woman.…

    • 1976 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    90 Miles to Havana

    • 3039 Words
    • 13 Pages

    distinguish between the figurative and connotative meanings of words as they are used in a text. [RL.9-10.4]…

    • 3039 Words
    • 13 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The grandmother dramatically tried to get their attention to make them stop to help. The grandmother saw the man and had a feeling she knew the man that came to help. The grandmother, then put the pieces together and realized that the man was the Misfit. The grandmother mentioned to the Misfit if he would actually plan on hurting a lady. Rather than thinking of her family, the grandmother fights to try and save her own life. The grandmother was was confronting to the Misfit that he was a good man and does not want to harm a lady. The grandmother also began to appeal the characteristics of a Christian to the Misfit. By trying to reach out and reasoning with the Misfit it causes the Misfit to take drastic measures. The Misfit gathered each family member one by one leading them into the woods which resulted in the death of each family…

    • 544 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In reading “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” most think that it is a very cynical tale, or even a horror story. While to others, it may sketch a reality for Christians to interpret the mysterious ways in which God works. Through foreshadowing and characterization, Flannery O’Connor displays a theme that is unmistakably real. The experiences in life are oftentimes taken for granted, and people cannot find true happiness in the realities of life.…

    • 2248 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The grandmother does not need to see the good to believe that it is there so she believes that everyone is capable of it. Unlike the grandma, The Misfit believes that if good is not shown or given to him, achieving a wicked thing is fine and morally okay. As a result of these different perspectives from growing up so differently, the characters develop very different morals. ‘O Conner’s intent with this idea is that morals are not necessarily viewed the same way and can explain why people do things that are considered “wrong”. In this time period certain things were considered a social norm when really it was not; things that dealt with race, and gender are examples of this. The author’s intent was to explain why people thought it was okay to use discrimination and that because they were raised that way the people could not see that what they were doing is wrong. At the end of the short story when The Misfit says “It’s no real pleasure in life” (11) that is when we see the shift of morals that was happening in that time period as well; when people were starting to stand up for what they believed…

    • 458 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Good Vs Evil

    • 491 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Good vs. evil is a classic theme often found in literature. In “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by O’Connor and “Young Goodman Brown” by Hawthorne, the authors focus on this theme to unravel their plots. O’Connor uses the grandmother and a thief, The Misfit, to compare and contrast the good and evil in people. On the other hand, Hawthorne’s, “Young Goodman Brown,” uses the main character, Young Goodman Brown, and his journey from being a respected man to being summoned by the devil. Both authors use their main characters as a comparison of what being good means, however the evil of the story is presented differently.…

    • 491 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    “Violence in a good man is hard to find, the faces of marginality” Begins by talking about how humans live their lives without morals and ethics, they compare people in today’s world to the characters of o Connors short story. The misfits are considered the dark side of society and the grandmother is the good. This demonstrates how good and evil coexist side by side. The author says how the grandmother is good and therefore she experiences a moment of epiphany that would only be given to the protagonist of the story. O Connor says how we learn through violence and because of the tragic events of the story the grandmother is given a moment of grace for recognizing the misfit as one of her own children. They state that o Connors work serves as a paradigmatic indictment, where criminals are not only aggressors but victims.…

    • 324 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Flannery O'Connor

    • 989 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Cited: O’Connor, Flannery. “A Good Man Is Hard to Find.” The Story and Its Writer. Ed. Ann Charters. 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s. 2011. 1043. Print.…

    • 989 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    “It’s no real pleasure in, life,” concludes “A Good Man is hard to find.” Discuss two O’Connor characters, from different stories, explaining how they show her criticism of modern spiritual despair. Note primarily their similarities.…

    • 562 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays