What Does Red Sammy Mean When He Says A Good Man Is Hard To Find?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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This scene also shows the grandmother’s initial idea of what a ‘good man’ is – she declares that Red Sammy is a ‘good man’

because he let someone charge gas even though

the description of Red clearly proves he is not a ‘good man’. It shows that the grandmother’s ideas are empty, ignorant, and vain.

Why did Red Sammy say a good man is hard to find?

Red Sammy is “good”

because he trusts people blindly and waxes nostalgic about more innocent times

—both of which the grandmother can relate to. The Misfit is “good” because, she reasons, he won’t shoot a lady—a refusal that would be in keeping with her own moral code.

What does Red Sammy mean?

Red Sammy’s purpose in the story is

to reiterate the fact that one cannot trust anyone

. This is a foreshadowing of the ex-convicts murdering the family.

How does Red Sammy respond when grandmother calls him a good man?

After a moment’s reflection Red Sammy Butts agrees, “

as if he were struck with this answer

.” He has an excessively high opinion of himself. The grandmother calls The Misfit a good man. While he accepts the part of the compliment that relates to his family, he does not accept the label as a description of himself.

Is Red Sammy A Good Man In A Good Man Is Hard to Find?

Red Sammy is a good man according to the grandmother,

trusting and even gullible to a fault

.

Why does the misfit shoot the grandmother?

The Misfit

kills the grandmother last to make her death more painful

(at least to the reader). The grandmother has to endure listening to the other five members of her family get shot in closer range (even though, in her selfish attitude, she doesn’t seem to care much).

How does the misfit view himself?

Because the Misfit has questioned himself and his life so closely, he

reveals a self-awareness that the grandmother lacks

. He knows he isn’t a great man, but he also knows that there are others worse than him. He forms rudimentary philosophies, such as “no pleasure but meanness” and “the crime don’t matter.”

What theme does the grandmother conversation with Red Sammy reveal?

The author demonstrates throughout the story that all humans are equally in need of grace because we are all very flawed. And finally, the conversation again reveals

the prejudices

that the grandmother has. Pointing out prejudice is one of the author’s themes in this work.

What is O’Connor saying about a good man in society?


“A Good Man Is Hard to Find”

is a typical Flannery O’Connor story, which means it presents us with a strange morality — one where integrity is found in immoral people and where hypocrisy and moral corruption seem magnetically attached to outwardly “good” people.

What do Red Sammy and the grandmother agree on?

The Grandmother eagerly agrees with this and calls

Sammy a “good man

.” Sam states that “a good man is hard to find,” and claims that people are terrible nowadays. He also accepts the Grandmother’s theory about how Europe is to blame for moral decay in the United States.

Why does the misfit call himself The Misfit?

Near the end of the story, the Misfit tells the grandmother that he calls himself the Misfit “

because [he] can’t make what all [he] done wrong fit what all [he] gone through in punishment

.” In other words, his punishment has not fit his so-called crime; it is, in a very literal way, a mis-fit.

What does the grandmother mean when she calls the Misfit a good man?

The grandmother calls the Misfit a good man

because she is trying desperately to save herself

. She uses the protections that have served her throughout her life. She tries to offer the Misfit money, which is pointless, as he can simply kill her and take it (as he point outs).

Who is the misfit in a good man?

The Misfit remains largely a mystery throughout the story. The Grandmother first reads about him in the newspaper—he is

an escaped convict and murderer

, and is thought to be headed to Florida (like the family).

Who is the hero in a good man is hard to find?

The protagonist of “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” is

the unnamed grandmother

. The grandmother undergoes a significant transformation over the course of the story, transitioning from a self-absorbed, proud woman to one who can extend love and acceptance to the Misfit at the end.

Who is the villain in A Good Man Is Hard to Find?


The Misfit

is the main antagonist of the short story “A Good Man is Far to Find” by Flannery ‘O Connor.

What is the irony in a good man is hard to find?

Situational irony occurs when the grandmother tries to persuade

Bailey

against traveling to Florida in an attempt to avoid the Misfit—but she ends up directing her family into the murderer’s path by convincing Bailey to take a back road to see an old house she remembers.

Amira Khan
Author
Amira Khan
Amira Khan is a philosopher and scholar of religion with a Ph.D. in philosophy and theology. Amira's expertise includes the history of philosophy and religion, ethics, and the philosophy of science. She is passionate about helping readers navigate complex philosophical and religious concepts in a clear and accessible way.