In her short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” Flannery O'Connor tells the story of a traveling family in Florida. The man known as “The Misfit” escaped police custody and is believed to be on the loose in the area. The story centers on Bailey, the patriarch of the family, his wife, his children John Wesley and June Star, his grandson and his mother. The group has an accident and encounters the misfit, which ultimately leads to their deaths. The grandmother thinks highly of herself compared to others and believes that she is a model of perfection and virtue. She consistently refers to herself as "lady" to describe her supposedly self-righteous nature. Throughout the story, his personality and selfishness lead the family down the path to their eventual death. She talks to everyone in order to make herself appear superior; she is unable to admit her mistakes and lies to her grandchildren in order to convince them to persuade their parents to take a detour that will lead them to meet the Misfit. When she realizes that she has misidentified the place to which she wishes to take a detour, among other things, she holds back. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Ultimately, her final moments truly showcase her selfishness, as she begs to be allowed to live as her family is mercilessly murdered. Throughout the story there are moments of religious references, as well as the grandmother openly discussing her faith. This is done deliberately because she and the events that unfold represent something. The grandmother's self-righteous and selfish behavior is a metaphor for the behavior of the Catholic Church throughout history and the eventual rejection of it by modern society. Throughout history, it is no secret that the Roman Catholic Church has held unprecedented power in Europe and all the countries it has colonized. Once they gained power, their influence spread and they soon became the dominant religion. The basis of the Catholic faith, like that of many others, promises to live virtuously and justly. Throughout the story, the grandmother constantly tries to present herself as virtuous. She feels superior to the rest of her family and reflects how those in the past felt about nonbelievers. She is the eldest in the family and therefore represents a sort of authority figure, or at least one who seems to demand respect or recognition. Just as the Catholic Church attempted to hold power by posing as a superior and older institution. When she describes herself as a “lady,” she does so to let the reader know that she maintains a certain standard and holds strict values. His reference to a “good man” represents the same idea, but in an external sense. Here, she is the institution that defends their supposed values ​​and virtues while a good man represents the search for these same ideas in others. Just as the Church in the past imposed strict guidelines to be followed, if one did not follow these guidelines it was considered blasphemous and unvirtuous. Throughout the story, she is also unable to see her own flaws. She is unable to recognize the danger she put her family in by sneaking aboard her cat, lying when she realizes she has the wrong house, she lies to her grandchildren to convince them to make the detour, it's her. who beckons the Misfit, and ultimately she does almost nothing to help her family survive the ordeal. Just as the Church did inIn the past, it has caused great atrocities and unrest with little or no public remorse. Their actions in the past have led to the suffering or endangerment of countless lives. They overlooked their past mistakes and chose to ignore them rather than acknowledge them and find solutions. On their way to Florida, the grandmother notices a house that brings back old memories from her past and inspires them to take a detour. She tells the grandchildren that there is a secret panel in the house, and the children become excited and urge their parents to stop. This false promise is synonymous with the behavior of the Church in most of medieval Europe. From selling indulgences to fighting in the crusades with the promise of entering heaven was a common practice. During the Black Death, the Church recommended against cleansing practices suggested by some doctors. Their stubbornness and inability to see their error would ultimately lead to the deaths of millions more people. Here, while not as extreme, the grandmother's inability to admit that she has led the family down the wrong path will lead to their demise. In today's world, the Catholic Church still holds a lot of power and influence, but the days of committing mass atrocities on a global scale are over. This was due to the change in the social climate, as we modernized, our ideas changed and we began to reject this past when we realized that it was detrimental to our future. Here, the other characters all represent the evolution and modernization of our society. The grandmother must deceive her grandchildren to convince their parents, just as, in the Church's attempt to maintain power, she had to convince those who were easier to coerce to convince others to follow. The grandchildren were young and naive, while the parents represent a population beginning to move away from the Church. When their family stops along the way and she chats with Red Sammy about the good old days and the decline of today's world, it's metaphorical for those who wish to keep things the way they were. The state of the world has changed, and to those who were not prepared for it, it seems that the evolution is negative. When Sammy states that "it's hard to find a good man", this could be referring to those who no longer share the same worldview as he and his grandmother. Finally, when the grandmother comes face to face with the misfit, they discuss Jesus. She asks him if he prays, to which he no longer answers. He mentions his past experiences in the church, claiming to have been a gospel singer. As she continues to talk to him, he becomes angrier and angrier until finally, once she grabs him by the shirt, he shoots her three times in the chest. The scene here solidifies the idea of ​​the new world casting aside and rejecting the old ways. The grandmother has represented the Church throughout history, preaching virtue and self-righteousness. Finally, she tries to appease her captor. She discusses religion with him, in the hope of inspiring him with goodness or mercy. The Misfit represents the modern era. As he discusses his past experiences with religion, it is evident that he seems to represent someone who has moved beyond it. He finds this annoying and believes that the world should "indulge in wickedness", which is a way of saying that the world should indulge in the things that the Church has kept under wraps. Even shooting him three times in the chest could be representative of the Holy Trinity, a fitting ending. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a now.