Comparing A Good Man Is Hard To Find And Good Country People

What is morally right, wrong, or in between relies on the individual making the judgment. Concepts of “good” and “bad” are not the same universally. In the stories “A Good Man is Hard to Find” and “Good Country People”, author Flannery O’Connor uses goodness as a theme and utilizes badness to establish the idea of goodness. In most cases, this is not so straightforward. “A Good Man is Hard to Find” has an elusive definition of what a “good man” is. The grandmother is the first to blame in the misuse of the word. She throws the label “good” around until it has lost all meaning entirely. First, she applies it to Red Sammy after he angrily complains of the general untrustworthiness of people. Red Sammy asks the grandmother rhetorically why

She replies that he must be a “good man”. In this instance, her definition of “good” must include poor judgment and gullibility, none of which are inherently “good”. Upon meeting the Misfit, she applies the label to him as well. After recognizing him, she asks him whether or not he would ever shoot a lady. He never says that he wouldn’t. Since being a lady is a big part of what the grandmother considers moral, the Misfit obviously doesn’t abide by the same moral code of ethics as she does. She desperately calls him a good man, as though appealing to some value deep within that he couldn’t deny. Her definition of “good” is skewed though, resting on her belief that the Misfit isn’t like most people. The grandmother’s application of the label “good” shows that it does not mean “kind” or “moral”. “Good” simply means whatever ideals align with hers. In the end, the grandmother and the Misfit are both unlikely recipients of “grace” despite their many flaws. In Christian theology, humans are granted salvation through God’s grace, which can be bestowed upon even the least likely of candidates. The grandmother and the Misfit are both bad in their own ways, yet grace settles on them both, suggesting that even people like them have

Hulga Hopewell is a unique character. She is an extreme intellectual, believing that she controls people through her unmatched wit and knowledge. Ironically this proves to be her strongest weakness. The whole story reeks of irony. O’Connor establishes parallels between the characters Mrs. Freeman and Manly Pointer as well as between Mrs. Hopewell and her daughter, Hulga, while simultaneously providing details to emphasize the differences between the four individual characters. O’Connor’s selection of names helps to establish their significance in the story. The name “Hopewell” (hope-well) characterizes both the mother and the daughter. They are both women who believe what is wanted can be had, yet both are blind to the world as it truly is. Both women neglect to see the world as good and evil. Leading them to assume the world is much simpler than it really is. Because they both have a failed perception of reality, they both “hope well” to tailor that world to their own needs. The name Manly Pointer functions as a somewhat brutal pun that points out the depths to which humanity might descend if it follows only its “manly” nature. Mrs. Freeman is given a clearer view of reality, though she chooses to concentrate on the grotesque aspects of life. When Mrs. Hopewell is speaking of these “good country people” she expresses an open view of how differences make the world go ‘round,