A Good Man is Hard to Find Assignment: Literary Analysis Guide

When tackling an assignment on Flannery O’Connor’s masterpiece “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” students often find themselves diving into one of the most compelling gothic short stories of the 20th century. This haunting tale, published in 1953, presents a deceptively simple road trip that transforms into a profound exploration of morality, evil, and human nature.

The story follows a family of six on their journey to Florida, only to encounter the escaped convict known as the Misfit. What makes this assignment particularly challenging—and fascinating—is O’Connor’s masterful use of language, tone, and literary devices to create a narrative that’s both darkly humorous and deeply unsettling.

Understanding O’Connor’s Unique Narrative Voice

The Multi-Layered Tone

O’Connor’s storytelling approach combines several distinct elements that make this assignment both rewarding and complex to analyze. Her tone weaves together:

• Detachment: The narrator maintains an almost clinical distance from the characters
• Dark humor: Absurd situations that make readers uncomfortable while they laugh
• Growing seriousness: The tone shifts dramatically as the story progresses
• Biting irony: Nothing is quite what it seems on the surface

Consider how O’Connor describes the children’s mother with a face “as innocent and broad as a cabbage that is tied with a green head scarf with two points on the top like the ears of a rabbit.” This comparison seems almost cruel in its bluntness, yet it perfectly captures the character’s simplicity and vulnerability.

The Power of Narrative Detachment

What strikes many students working on this assignment is how O’Connor refuses to make her characters particularly likeable. The narrator doesn’t invite sympathy; instead, she presents each character with their flaws and quirks exposed. This detachment serves a purpose—it forces readers to judge the characters honestly, without the comfort of emotional manipulation.

This technique becomes particularly powerful when the family confronts the Misfit. O’Connor’s Southern Gothic tradition shows ordinary people facing pure evil, and the narrator’s cool observation makes the horror more stark and real.

Analyzing O’Connor’s Distinctive Writing Style

Deliberate Simplicity in Language

For students working on assignments about O’Connor’s technique, her use of simple, direct language is crucial to understand. She writes with intentional plainness that serves multiple purposes:

Writing Element	Purpose	Example
Short sentences	Creates tension and urgency	“The old lady settled herself comfortably”
Simple vocabulary	Focuses attention on dialogue and action	Direct character descriptions
Plain descriptions	Allows subtext to emerge powerfully	Grandmother’s mundane actions before crisis

O’Connor’s description of the Grandmother “settling herself very comfortably, removing her gloves made of white cotton and putting them up together with her purse on a shelf that is in front of a black window” demonstrates this deliberate simplicity. Every word counts, nothing is wasted, and the ordinary details become ominous in context.

The Challenge of Dialect and Historical Language

This assignment often requires students to grapple with O’Connor’s use of period-appropriate language that reflects the social attitudes of the 1930s South. The Grandmother’s vocabulary includes terms that were common then but are recognized today as offensive and problematic.

When the Grandmother points to “a Negro” and uses the term “pickaninny,” O’Connor isn’t endorsing this language—she’s capturing the authentic speech patterns of her character’s time and place. This presents both an opportunity and a challenge for modern readers and students analyzing the text.

Key points for assignment analysis:

• O’Connor uses authentic dialogue to reveal character prejudices
• The language reflects historical Southern attitudes
• These word choices aren’t accidental—they’re carefully chosen to show character flaws
• The dialect adds authenticity while making modern readers uncomfortable

Mastering Figurative Language Analysis

Similes That Reveal Character

O’Connor’s use of comparison through similes serves multiple functions in the story. These aren’t just decorative elements—they’re tools for character development and mood creation.

Notable similes in the story:

• Mother’s face “as broad and innocent as a cabbage”
• Bailey’s jaw “as rigid like a horseshoe”
• The Misfit’s car “big battered, just like an automobile”

Each comparison does more than describe; it reveals something about the observer and the observed. The Grandmother’s comparison of her daughter-in-law to a cabbage shows her critical, somewhat cruel nature. The horseshoe comparison suggests stubbornness and inflexibility.

Personification and Its Dramatic Effect

One of the most striking examples of personification occurs when O’Connor writes about “the dust coated trees looking down on them.” This technique transforms the landscape into a witness—and perhaps a judge—of the unfolding events.

Literary Device	Example	Effect
Personification	Trees “looking down”	Creates sense of being watched/judged
Simile	Face like “cabbage”	Reveals narrator’s harsh perspective
Irony	“Good man” theme	Questions moral certainty

The personified trees suggest that even nature is aware of the family’s fate, creating an atmosphere of impending doom that builds throughout the story.

Character Analysis for Assignment Success

The Grandmother as Unreliable Narrator

Students often struggle with the Grandmother’s role in their assignments because she’s simultaneously sympathetic and frustrating. She’s the closest thing to a protagonist, yet her actions directly lead to the family’s doom.

Grandmother’s key characteristics:

• Self-centered but not entirely unsympathetic
• Represents old Southern values and prejudices
• Manipulative yet ultimately vulnerable
• Claims moral authority she doesn’t possess

Her final moments with the Misfit reveal both her limitations and her potential for grace—a complexity that makes her perfect for in-depth character analysis.

The Misfit as Philosophical Antagonist

The Misfit isn’t a simple villain. He’s a character grappling with questions of meaning, justice, and faith. His philosophical conversations with the Grandmother elevate the story from a simple crime tale to a profound meditation on good and evil.

Understanding the Misfit’s complexity:

• He questions religious and moral certainties
• His violence stems from philosophical confusion, not simple cruelty
• He represents the logical end of moral relativism
• His interaction with the Grandmother reveals both characters’ true natures

Thematic Analysis for Advanced Assignments

The Elusive Nature of Goodness

The story’s title poses a question that runs throughout the narrative: what makes a “good man”? O’Connor systematically undermines easy answers to this question.

Characters who claim goodness:

• The Grandmother (through her social status and religious references)
• Red Sammy (through his nostalgia for better times)
• The Misfit (through his honest self-examination)

Yet none of these characters demonstrates clear moral superiority. O’Connor suggests that true goodness might be rarer and more complex than we assume.

Grace and Redemption

For students focusing on religious themes in their assignments, O’Connor’s Catholic worldview becomes crucial. The story explores whether grace can emerge even in moments of violence and despair.

The Grandmother’s final gesture toward the Misfit—touching his shoulder and calling him one of her children—might represent a moment of genuine grace. Whether this gesture redeems anyone remains ambiguous, which is exactly O’Connor’s point.

Writing Strategies for Your Assignment

Close Reading Techniques

When analyzing this story for an assignment, focus on specific passages and their multiple layers of meaning. Don’t just summarize—dig into how O’Connor’s techniques create meaning.

Effective analysis approaches:

• Choose specific quotes and examine their context
• Consider how dialogue reveals character
• Look for patterns in imagery and language
• Connect literary techniques to thematic meanings

Avoiding Common Assignment Pitfalls

Many students make predictable mistakes when writing about this story:

• Oversimplifying the characters: Don’t make anyone purely good or evil
• Ignoring historical context: The story reflects its time period’s attitudes
• Missing the religious dimension: O’Connor’s Catholic perspective is crucial
• Focusing only on plot: The how matters more than the what

Frequently Asked Questions