Characters

The most important characters in the short story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor are the grandmother and the Misfit. Their actions shape the plot, and their conversation reveals significant traits in the two characters. It also presents their beliefs and their contradictory outlook on life. The grandmother argues for redemption, while the Misfit claims that there is no point in it.

John Wesley and June Star are secondary characters. They highlight the family’s relationship with the grandmother, pointing to the fact that they are usually irritated by her. Bailey and his unnamed wife are also present in the story, but they are both passive characters, only reacting to the events in the story and not taking any initiative.

The Misfit’s two accomplices, Hiram and Bobby Lee are also mentioned. They seem to be escaped prisoners too, and they follow the Misfit’s orders. They are the ones who kill the younger members of the family.

The short story also briefly mentions Red Sammy Butts, owner of the Tower, and his wife. Red Sammy is important mostly because he introduces the remark: “A good man is hard to find” (l. 171), which foreshadows the story’s ending.

You can read a more detailed analysis of the grandmother and the Misfit in the following sections.