RUNNING HEAD: A GOOD MAN IS HARD TO FIND Todor Yanchev South University Online January 18, 2009 Analysis of “A Good Man is Hard to Find” By: Todor Yanchev The classic idea of good versus evil has been an issue of debate since the beginning of mankind. “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is a story that deals directly with that age-old conflict. Flannery O’Connor uses the phrase “a good man is hard to find” to help define her view of the decline of goodness in the old southern culture. She also uses this phrase to open up the debate to include Christianity and religions overall effect on the subject, as well as to probe into and question what really defines someone as being “a good man”. Gothic writing relies on the tone and setting to give an overall dark mood to the story. Images of the grotesque and the idea of irony are prevalent throughout all Gothic writing. In “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” O’Connor uses the key elements of Gothic style, and places them in a Southern setting, to examine society’s attitudes towards class, violence, religion, and family relationships. O’Connor further goes on to define Southern Gothic writing by using Southern stereotypes. The Grandmother is a model of the aging Southern woman. She is distant from the real world, her only knowledge coming from newspapers and television, and feels safe in her sheltered environment. She is obsessed with manners and vanity, and is constantly remarking about the family’s lack of respect for their elders. She even dresses in her Sunday best for the car ride, so that in “…case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once she was a lady.” [DiYanni, 2007, p.203]. O’Connor uses these archetypes to highlight and criticize the themes and values of the American South. Finally, O’Connor uses irony throughout “A Good Man is Hard to find.” The Grandmother is the biggest advocate for the family taking a vacation, but she does not agree with the choice of Florida, because “she...