Foreshadowing In A Good Man Is Hard To Find

In many works of literature, authors use different styles and techniques to personalize their stories. In the story “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, Flannery O’Conner uses a variety of stylistic techniques that help the story be creative. O’Conner uses foreshadowing, which happens when the author uses hints throughout the story that tell the ending before it approaches, to make the story stronger. The story is about a family vacation that ends in a deadly bloodshed. The title itself reflects that something bad will happen in the story and catches the reader’s eye. The first time evidence of foreshadowing is introduced happens at the very beginning. Grandma is reading the paper and runs across a very interesting article. It talks about an escaped convict named "The Misfit", who is a serial killer

As the family ride down on an old dirt road, that Grandma leads them to, the family passes a field with about five or six graves; this represents the 6 passengers that are in the car (Baumgaertner). This example is very subtle, but also very significant because it includes the whole family for the first time. Throughout the story, O’Conner uses different death symbols, and this adds to the imagery. It also helps the reader put all the pieces together before the end of the story comes. Once the family crashes there is an immediate sense of danger in the story, especially when the “hearse-like” vehicle is mentioned. With all of the references in the story being so close together it helps the reader stay connected to the story. The reader becomes more connected to the story because of the detail the author uses as well; O’Connor creates the characters to seem so realistic. This makes it easier for the reader to relate, and the reader also feels the sense of doom with all the indications of foreshadowing, even if he or she does not pick up on