A Good Man is Good to Find by Flannery O'Connor - Essay Example

Written in 1953, this selection is a realistic short story because it illustrates the characteristics of realism. In “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, the grandmother attempts to persuade her son, Bailey, and his wife to take the family to east Tennessee for holiday instead of Florida. Finally, on the day of the journey, grandmother puts out of sight her cat, Pitty Sing, by putting her in a basket in the car. She dons a dress and a hat adorned with flowers on it so that people will realize she is a lady if there is an accident.

As the story develops, the family stops at a restaurant known as the Tower, owned by Red Sammy Butts. Red Sammy grumbles that people are had to trust, remarking that he lately let two men purchase gas on credit. Grandmother informs him he’s a good man for doing it. Contrary, Red Sammy’s wife declares she does not trust anyone, including her husband. When the grandmother asks Red Sam’s wife whether she has heard about the Misfit, this makes her somewhat apprehensive and starts to worry that he’ll rob them.

Red Sammy then remarks: “A good man is hard to find.” He and grandmother grieve the state of the world. The first characteristic of realism is that the story is the story takes place in a recognizable, common setting. A Good Man is Hard to Find is set the rural Southern American in the fall of 1953. Flannery O’Connor does not however give exact town name. This story takes place in numerous states as the family travels by vehicle toward a vacation. Further, the author puts, believable characters living ordinary, believable lives.

The Baileys are very ordinary family of five—a grandmother, a wife, two kids-an eight old boy and a daughter. All great mix up of a happy, stable ordinary family. A perfect example of a realistic fiction, right? Realistic writing puts a lot of focus on the characters more than it does on the plot. In fact, there is a lot more action in this story. The grandmother views herself morally superior to others by her virtue of being a lady, and she freely often passes judgment on others. She asserts that her scruples are the guiding forces in her life, such as when she informs Bailey that her conscience would not permit her to the take the kids in the same direction as the Misfit.

She admonishes Bailey’s wife for not vacationing to a place that would open new ideas for the kids. The grandmother also criticizes Bailey for not having more reverence for Georgia, his place of birth. Even so, she also takes the chance to judge the lack of decency in people in the world. As result, the grandmother unwillingness to turn her decisive eyes on herself to examine her mistakes reveals to the readers her hypocrisy, dishonesty and selfishness. Another characteristic of realism is presence of conflicts between people and society.

Of course, the major conflict starts when the family’s enjoyable vacation has taken an abrupt turn for the worse. However, the high of the conflict starts back in the car, when the grandmother wakes from a snooze and notices that a plantation she had once vacationed was nearby. She explains that the house had six white columns and was at the edge of an oak tree-lined driveway. The grandmother deceives the family that the house had a surreptitious pane to make the house appear more interesting.

Overwhelmed, the children plead until their father finally gives in. The family drives through the clump of woods. The grandmother then suddenly recalls that the house was in Tennessee, not in Georgia. At this point, we suspect that something bad is about to happen until the accident happens. Furthermore, in realistic fiction there is complication also. The Misfit turns up, exacerbating a bad situation. The grandmother puts the family squarely in jeopardy by