In all human beings, the psyche plays a very crucial role in maintaining the personalities of the people. People sometimes have trouble in dealing with others or with their own lives due to their inability to control their unconscious psyche. Recently, in psychoanalysis theory, Freud presents the composition of the psyche. In literary studies, many characters are analyzed in relation to psychoanalysis. O'Conner's story "A Good Man is Hard to Find" can be interpreted by using Freud's theory of psychoanalysis, core issues and defense mechanism. Throughout the story, the author uses the character of the grandmother to show this in her characteristics that leads to the death of her family. .
The core issues that exist in the story "A Good Man is Hard to Find" led Grandmother to act strangely. First of all, Grandma's core issues seems that she has low self-esteem and lack self-conciseness, she describes herself as a good woman, a lady. She is an old, southern woman; her way of speaking and how she dresses are indications that she considers herself a lady, " the old lady settled herself comfortably, removing her white cotton glovesat her neckline she had pinned a purple spray of cloth" (O'conner2). In the other hand, she is exposed as racist and heartless. She has more sympathy for their cat, who might have missed her, rather than human member of her family. Moreover, when the children get out of hand, she tells a racist story to entertain them. Also, she has bought the patriarchal ideology that women are to be looked at and valued in the male look, being a "patriarchal woman." She knows she is a bad person and she only thinks about herself. Second, from the beginning of the story shown that grandma has insecure and unstable sense of self which is evident in her behavior, body language and her interactions with her family also the Misfit. She would like to live in the past, she connects every detail happens in their trip to the past for instant, she keep saying phrases such as "In my time," (O'conner2).
