Discussion Questions

Five Questions Worth Considering

1.

The Grandmother displays opinions and beliefs that are out of step with the current time, and although she arguably has a moment of clarity in her final exchange with the Misfit, she remains a character quite rooted in the past. Knowing this, what change does the Grandmother experience, if any?

2.

Clothing is repeatedly emphasized throughout A Good Man is Hard to Find. What does clothing reveal about the characters? What could the emphasis on clothing represent?

3.

Based on what evidence the reader is given through characterization, are John Wesley and June Star, the children, worse human beings than the Grandmother?

4.

There is tension between generations, and ways of viewing the world throughout O’Connor’s story. By examining the generations through the characters’ who lived them, i.e.: the Grandmother’s, Bailey, his wife and the Misfit’s, and the two children’s, which generation is being argued as superior? Or, are all equally flawed?

5.

By examining the tone of A Good Man is Hard to Find, along with the outcome of the Grandmother and her family at the hands of the Misfit, is there any hope for a positive society? Or, is the only way to succeed in life by being ruthless?