Symbolism In A Good Man Is Hard To Find

In A Good Man Is Hard to Find by Flannery O'Connor, we are taken on a road trip with a family consisting of a mother, father, grandmother, and three children. The author first uses the saying "a good man is hard to find" while the family is at a diner and the grandmother and the owner, Red Sammy, are discussing how the times had changed and that you can no longer trust people or leave your doors unlocked. “Everything is getting terrible. I remember the day you could go off and leave your screen door unlatched. Not no more" (Kirszner & Mandell, 2012). This story "wrestles with questions of good and evil and the possibility of divine grace" (Sustana, 2017). I believe what they were inferring was that honest men no longer existed.

When Dee returned her mother was expecting her to be the same person that "wanted nice things" (Kirszner & Mandell, 2012, p. 346). I pictured Dee when described by her mother as beautiful, smart, outgoing, and ambitious. Dee was the opposite of her sister who I pictured also from her mother's description as not attractive and not too bright. Dee returns and now has an understanding that these items are a part of her family's history and culture. Each item was handmade by a family member that was no longer living. The wooden bench by her father, the butter churn by her uncle, and the quilts by her aunt and grandmother. Having been made by them also gives them sentimental value. To Dee's mother, it's just a bench, a butter churn, and a quilt. I believe that the quilts were of the most value to Dee because they were made from various clothing that her grandparent had worn. Dee was making a transition to gain knowledge of herself and her family by reconnecting to her African roots. She had changed her name and even her dress attire. Dee wanted to make them understand that the items were a part of their heritage, but there was not any room for understanding in the minds of her mother or sister. "Dee collects objects for their symbolic meaning and visual beauty, rather than for their utility" (Churchill, 017). But what Dee does not understand is that these items were made for

She tried and tried to free her dress but when one piece was released, another piece was caught, "her skirts were full and long"(Kirszner & Mandell, 2012, p. 388). The second time Phoenix might have abandoned her mission was when she crossed the river over the log and decided to take a break. She is sitting on the ground and imagining a little boy bringing her a slice of cake. "But when she went to take it there was just her own hand in the air" (Kirszner & Mandell, 2012, p. 388). A mixture of her age and exhaustion made Phoenix hallucinate. The third instance that Phoenix might have abandoned her mission was the time when the black dog appeared. Phoenix was lying on her back and had what she called a dream. "A dream visited her, and she reached her hand up, but nothing reached down and gave her a pull" Kirszner & Mandell, 2012, p. 390). A hunter then came along and she was brought back to reality. The hunter even tried to tell her to go back home, but she was determined to make it to her destination. The symbol of a phoenix represents a creature that dies but is recreated again and again, therefore a symbol of longevity. "That Phoenix shares a name with such a creature reflects her indefatigable nature, her constant striving towards her goal, as well as her unflagging optimism and high spirits" (Goodman,