A Good Man is Hard to Find
Last Rites
?Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. Its the transition thats troublesome.? – Jimi Hendrix. The late rock n roll artist summed up one of the most challenging fears to overcome for all humans, preparation for death. Flannery O?Connor uses this concept to show how it can affect people?s behaviors and attitudes. The story begins with the typical family being challenged by the grandmother who doesnt want to take the vacation to Florida. She has read about a crazed killer by the name of the Misfit who is on the run heading for Florida. Unfortunately, she is ignored by every member of the family except for the little girl, June Star, who can read the grandmother like an open book. The fact that she admonishes Bailey, her son, of this Misfit and “what it says he did to those people?(1277) foreshadows what will happen to them. As readers, we know that O?Connor will not mention such an interesting fact without having it affect the characters later on in the story. In Flannery O?Connor?s ?A Good Man is Hard To Find,? one is struck by the unexpected violence at the end of the story. However, if you
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