In the short story, “A Good Man is Hard to find,” Flannery O’Connor employs the literary elements of irony, foreshadowing, and point of view, to convey the concepts that we each experience reality, however skewed, through the sometimes morally-distorted lens of individual perception. Occasionally, salvation from such blindness is attainable, though more often than not, the ultimate price for such clarity – life itself – must be paid. This story may seem like nonsensical violence or heavily laden with symbols, but the violence serves as the author’s means to further her message regarding salvation. "A Good Man is Hard to Find" presents the opinion that contemporary society was drastically changing for the worse.

One stark example of O’Connor’s use of irony is noticeable in her choices for characters names. One of the more obvious ironies in names is that of the daughter, June Star. June Star is the little girl who, in reality, is no shining star. One can realize immediately that June thinks of herself as the little princess. But we as the readers can see that in all actuality, her perceptions about herself could not be farther

The previous statement by the grandmother is perhaps the most noticeable example of foreshadowing in O’Connor’s work. In fact, this literary device is one of the first features a reader will pick up on. O’Connor’s use of foreshadowing in this story is obvious or even border line exaggerated. When she tells us that the grandmother “wouldn’t take [her] children in any direction with a criminal like that aloose in it,” one can only immediately suspect that this family will encounter the killer. Obviously, O’Connor wanted her readers to realize that horrible things are in store for the less than perfect family should they fail to open their eyes. More warnings appear when the family stops at Red Sammy’s for lunch. The grandmother thinks she has found a like mind in Sammy when, in all actuality, the reader’s know as Sammy tells his wife to “…hurry up with these people’s order” that he is anxious to get the family out of his restaurant. Later, the reader sees the author at work again foreshadowing events to come when the grandmother and Sammy and his wife discuss the Misfit, and the possibilities of the criminal making an appearance at the restaurant. Nevertheless, the family goes on about their lives, seemingly oblivious to their fatalistic shortcomings: their inability to live life on anything other than a superficial level, with no regard for moral or religious standards. This foreshadowing stays with the reader as the family spots a car on the road approaching them. Again, O’Connor ensures the readers awareness of the fact that the “…big black hearse-like car…” has intentions other than help.

from the truth. The phrase, “I wouldn’t live in a broken-down place like this for a million bucks!” shows the reader how vain, spoiled, and stuck up she actually is. Similarly, O’Connor’s decis

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