Flannery O'Connor is a highly regarded short fiction writer, largely attributed to her "contrast of violent action with humorously and carefully drawn characters and a philosophy that underscores her devout Roman Catholic faith" (Enotes.com). O'Connor creates stories that instill her religious belief about how God's grace plays a role in the lives of ordinary people. In almost every piece of her writing she demonstrates this theme, once described as "the action of divine grace in the horribly imperfect, often revolting, generally funny world of human beings" (Shmoop). In her story, "A Good Man is Hard to Find" Flannery O'Connor implements her southern religious personality and uses foreshadowing and characterization to depict the mysterious ways that God works through human beings. .
While O'Connor was growing up she had the hardship of having to take care of her sick father. "He died of systemic lupus erythematosus, a chronic autoimmune disease that attacks otherwise healthy tissues and organs. O'Connor was devastated by the loss of her father, one of the closest relationships in her life" (Shmoop). Perhaps this event in her life made her question why God chose such a great man to have such an awful disease that took him away from her at a young age. This unanswered question in God may have led her to write short fiction stories that helped her answer this question. She used her stories as a justification on how God works within human beings. In "A Good Man is Hard to Find" she uses the grandmother to show that everyone deserves to be saved by God, even if they led a sinful life. .
The beginning of "A Good Man is Hard to Find" appears to be insignificant. Flannery O'Connor; however, uses foreshadowing to bring on new meaning. The story begins with the grandmother explaining how a criminal, The Misfit, is on the loose and headed to Florida.
