John Wesley" The Junior Misfit
John Wesley: The Junior Misfit Southern gothic literature is defined as “storytelling in which engaging, violent, and frequently grotesque characters are often treated with colloquial humor” (Diyanni, 2007, pg. 185). Southern gothic is like traditional gothic literature in which it depends on “supernatural, ironic, or unusual events “(Platt, 2007, para 1). It departs from traditional gothic literature in that it does not use those tools to build suspense but instead to explore the social issues and culture of the American South. In this genre, instead of using the stereotypical genteel characters of the South the author tends to change the classical Gothic subjects into more modern, realistically flawed characters. The author further deviates from the norm with the characters by venturing into the “grotesque” by introducing the even more flawed personality traits of racial bigotry and self righteousness but balancing them so that they can still be interesting characters while still highlighting the detestable aspects of southern culture. One of the best known authors of this genre is Flannery O’Connor. O’Connor’s use of the southern gothic genre provides insight into her life, the short story, ”A Good Man is Hard to Find”, and the relation between the characters, John Wesley and the Misfit. “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, was first published in 1955. The story begins with the family preparing to vacation in Florida. The grandmother would rather go to east Tennessee. She tries to make her case by referring to a newspaper article about an escaped convict called The Misfit, who is said to be on the route to Florida. Bailey ignores her arguments against the trip to Florida, and the next morning they set off. The grandmother begins the foreshadowing the story by dressing herself in manner in which if they had an accident and they died, they would “at once know she was a lady” (O’Connor, 1955, pg.203) She secretly packs her cat, “Pitty Sing”, against her son’s wishes and...
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