The Misfit, the pathological killer who murders an entire family in this story, was apparently fabricated from newspaper accounts of two criminals who had terrorized the Atlanta area in the early 1950s;
Red Sammy Butts
, according to another critic, may have been based on a local “good ole boy” who had made good and …
Who is the misfit in the story a good man is hard to find?
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).
Is Bailey the misfit in a good man is hard to find?
Bailey is
the grandmother's only son
, and the father of June Star and John Wesley. He is also the driver for the family trip. … When the family has its unfortunate encounter with The Misfit, Bailey loses it. Even before he knows who The Misfit is, the accident itself has already frayed his nerves.
Why was the misfit in jail in a good man is hard to find?
The Misfit claims
that he was raised well and that his life turned when he was put in prison for the murder of his father
. However, he also remembers his father dying 1918. There's a certain tension and ambiguity in terms of how he frames his time in prison, because…
What is the Epiphany in A Good Man Is Hard to Find?
The grandmother has an epiphany,
an illuminating realization of truth
, because, as the Misfit identifies in the end, she finally “had…somebody there to shoot her.” It took being in a life-and-death situation, a moment that tested all of her mettle and values, for her to have a realization about her own humanity as …
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.
Is the misfit a psychopath?
It is clear and definite that the Misfit lacks empathy,
a psychopath
, and is not one of those murderers that does it for fun and so see their victim in pain, a sadist. Towards the end of the short story, the Misfit is expresses how he kills people for the meanness of doing it (O ‘Connor 308).
What does the misfit believe is wrong in his life?
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.”
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).
Is the misfit the grandmother's son?
You're one of my own children!” The
Misfit isn't literally the grandmother's child
; rather, this points to the fact that she realizes they are both human beings.
How does the misfit compare himself to Jesus?
In the religious drama within the story, the Misfit acts as both Christ and anti-Christ figure. He compares himself to Christ, saying, “
It was the same case with Him as me, except He hadn't committed any crime and they could prove I had committed one because they had the papers on me”
(131).
What does the misfit say about pleasure?
The Misfit condemns Jesus, saying that by raising the dead he threw everything off balance and forces you to either follow or deny him. Afterwords he says in your final moments you should enjoy yourself by either murdering or destroying, “
No pleasure but meanness
” he says.
What does the misfit say about Jesus?
The Misfit responds to the Grandmother's words “
Jesus, Jesus
,” by saying that Jesus threw everything off balance. He goes on a little later to add to this idea: Jesus was the only One that ever raised the dead,” The Misfit continued, “and He shouldn't have done it. He shown everything off balance.
How does Red Sammy respond when the grandmother calls him a good man?
In both conversations the grandmother describes the characters as good men. 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.
What animal is on Baileys shirt in A Good Man Is Hard to Find?
At that point, we learn that he had on a yellow sport shirt with
bright blue parrots
designed in it. Following Bailey's murder by Hiram and Bobby Lee, the Misfits companions, the shirt is given to the Misfit, who dons it.
What is the irony in A Good Man Is Hard to Find?
Situational irony occurs when a development in a story is the opposite of what the reader expects. In “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” this type of irony occurs
when an evil man, The Misfit, causes Bailey's mother to see herself for what she is, a sinner
.
