Jesus Christ was a woman. At least, according to Flannery O'Connor. We see this in an uncanny parallel between the death of Jesus and the death of the Grandmother in A Good Man is Hard to Find. The Misfit is an unsaved man, a heathen, clearly in need of religious stabilization (according to O'Connor); the fact that he is unsaved is demonstrated by his brutality, even if we disregard his outright statement of disbelief. The Grandmother transforms from a woman with the appearance of a good Christian to the spiritual image of Christ himself, performing an act of salvation before her demise.
The grandmother can only be described by unkind words at the onset of the story. She is selfish, among many other sins, but she maintains the outward appearance of a proper Christian. This situation changes as the story progresses, and we see her become Christlike in every way during the Misfit's crime. Jesus spoke of turning the other cheek, not of retaliation; the grandmother does nothing to prevent the deaths of her family. She does, however, love her fellow human as herself; it is unambiguously stated that the Misfit is a “good man”, even though he has killed many people. This irrational love for fellow man is a direct analogue to Christ's teachings, with much the same result. As surely as the Jews crucified Jesus, so did the Misfit mercilessly drive three rounds into Grandmother's torso.
A large number of people in class during the discussion of this story called the grandmother a “fool.” What would stop the same description of Jesus, then? The crucial point is that in class, we assumed that the grandmother's only goal was to save her own skin; this isn't necessarily true. In fact, the Misfit's reaction to her touch and his subsequent actions speak to a profound effect the grandmother had on the man. It's up in the air as to whether she intended to touch him so deeply; that it was unintentional is supported by the fact that it would be consistent with the grandmother's attitude, while positive intentionality of the act is supported by the fact that her mind becomes “clear”. The clarity, being more recent, represents a more accurate picture of her state of mind at that point and so we can logically conclude that this event is intentional. This is where the argument of foolishness falls apart; just as Jesus never meant to save his own skin, it appears obvious that this wasn't the grandmother's primary goal, either. It's not that she doesn't know how to save herself, it's that she doesn't really care.
All the same, it's a stupid goal. Just as Jesus never saved anyone by dying on the cross, the grandmother doesn't save the Misfit, as evidenced by the fact that he kills her anyway. The way to moral salvation to any man is not spiritual salvation; religion may attract good people, but it doesn't produce them. Otherwise, why would Mother Theresa be an exception, not the rule? Religion (and grandma's ramblings about being a good person) is not what the Misfit needs. He needs real help, not just empty promises of life after death. (538)
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Alex, you raise several good questions, and you apply some strong logic to them. But I question a couple of your assumptions. One seems to be that grandmother's primary goal remains constant, whereas I see evidence in the story, some of which you mention, that her motive changes, in ways she didn't expect, from selfishness and false piety to a truer, deeper version of the same thing.
ReplyDeleteAnd although I'm not religious myself, I'd argue that a true and deep understanding of any religion, applied to one's actions, does produce moral human beings. One needn't be Mother Theresa to be a good person, religious or otherwise.