A Good Man is Hard to Find and The Lottery: Symbolism and Irony

Introduction

Literary devices are techniques used by authors in literature to convey either a particular meaning or to help make connections so readers understand it on a deeper level. The use of literary devices has proven to be an integral part of successful short stories as it can reveal hidden main ideas and themes. The author must detail such things as the characters, setting, and theme to put the reader into a state in which they fully understand and feel the story. This is successfully achieved in the short stories “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O'Connor and “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson. Two particular literary devices stand out in both short stories: symbolism and irony. Symbolism and irony are used throughout the short stories in which the author attempts to demonstrate the underlying theme and significance of the conclusion and actions of the characters.

Symbolism in A Good Man is Hard to Find

In literature, symbolism produces an effect by connecting supplementary meanings to an object or actions. “A Good Man is Hard to Find” demonstrates this well as it gives meaning to the Grandmother, the surrounding nature, and the battle between good and evil. One symbol that represents the Grandmother includes a fancy hat she seems to wear throughout the trip. The hat is a symbol of her selfish disposition and her need to look proper in all situations. As said in the story, “Her collars and cuffs were white organdy trimmed with lace and at her neckline she had pinned a purple spray of cloth violets containing a sachet. In case of an accident, anyone seeing her dead on the highway would know at once that she was a lady” (O’Connor 178). She is more concerned with giving off the appearance as a lady even after her death than actually being righteous and being a true Christian. The hat later represents how uncontent she is at the moment of death. The Misfit continually preaches how all of one’s intentions at their time of death is meaningless. The Grandmother has a false sense of death as all she thinks about is her image and not thinking of the true meaning of death. In the story, it says, “She stood staring at it and ... she let it fall on the ground' (184). This is all apparent as the Grandmother’s hat gets destroyed during the car accident. She plans to have a respectable death but once her hat gets destroyed it symbolizes that she can no longer control her fate. The use of symbolism in this story is used effectively in that it is able to incorporate different parts of the story to express the overall theme. The hat connects the grandmother to the problems she is a part of: the Misfit and her family. The hat representing her morality is often in conflict with her environment and she is too prideful to admit to being wrong. This enables a deeper meaning to be established for the grandmother and the characters around her.

Irony in A Good Man Is Hard to Find

Irony is another prominent literary device used to further explain the fundamental theme and actions of the characters. Perhaps the most ironic instance in “A Good Man is Hard to Find” is when the grandmother completely misconstrues the intentions of the Misfit, who is learned to be a complete psychopath. The grandmother pleads for her life by talking about salvation and finally understanding how truely disturbed and dazed the Misfit is. During the story, it is seen how superficial the grandmother is about her looks and having a false persona of being moral. However, at this point in talking to the Misfit, she has a revelation and actually feels compassion and pity for him. As said in the story, “She saw the man's face twisted close to her own as if he were going to cry and she murmured, ‘Why you're one of my babies. You're one of my own children!’ She reached out and touched him on the shoulder” (185). The most ironic part follows by the Misit “rewarding” the grandmother with three shots to the chest. This is undoubtedly ironic as it was just as the grandmother was becoming compassionate, finally being able to move past her selfish nature. She essentially ends up signing her own death warrant because the Misfit is not interested in sympathy and his ultimate goal is to survive. The grandmother is seen as a threat as she attempts to reform his values and essence of living. The story expresses the values the grandmother hold to herself and how she chooses to express them to the outside world. Her fabricated moral standards come back in the form of a serious situation with the Misfit in which it turns into a battle of good versus evil. The irony presented in this story helps trigger emotions because the readers know what awaits the character. The grandmother’s false sense of morality leads her into the hands of the Misfit which only then does she change.

Symbolism in The Lottery

In the short story “The Lottery” symbolism has a primitive role in explaining the actions of the characters and the purpose of their tradition. One important symbol that is used are stones. Stoning is an ancient form of punishment in which it causes a cruel and slow death, speaking to the barbaric nature of the story. The stones are used as a symbol of the violence that humans are evidently always ready to commit. The reason that stoning is used in the story is that there is no single executioner. This means no individual person has to be condemned or has to carry the guilt for taking a life alone. This is important for the story because it reinforces the idea of who the enemy is, in reality. In order for stoning to be considered efficient, it requires a crowd to act together. This emphasizes the point that the antagonist of this story is society as a whole and not a single person. Children gather the stones at the beginning of the story and the villagers eventually use these stones to kill Tessie Hutchinson. As said in the story, “Bobby Martin had already stuffed his pockets full of stones, and the other boys soon followed his example, selecting the smoothest and roundest stones; Bobby and Harry Jones and Dickie Delacroix—the villagers pronounced this name ‘Dellacroy’—eventually made a great pile of stones in one corner of the square and guarded it against the raids of the other boys” (Jackson 127). No one is excluded from this tradition as even Tessie’s son, little Davy Hutchinson, is offered stones to help kill his own mother. These weapons are crude and show violence is fundamental to human nature, even in the hands of children. At the end of the story, it seems the villagers had forgotten the traditions of the lottery; however, “they still remembered to use stones” for the killing (132). Symbolism of the stones further improves the story as it is able to connect to the real world and represent the savage essence.

Irony in The Lottery

Another highly utilized literary device found in “The Lottery” is irony. The characters seem to have a particular ironic connotation. One example of a character that has an ironic name is Mr. Summers, the man in charge of drawing the names from the black box. Mr. Summer’s name is associated with being a warm and pleasant season, usually having a happy and festive time. However, it is seen that Mr. Summers is, in fact, in charge of selecting a random citizen who will be senselessly murdered and be the one to bring about death and darkness. Mr. Graces is another character who has an ironic name. Mr. Graves’ disposition as he takes part in the lottery reflects the significance of the lottery itself. In the story, it says, “She watched while Mr. Graves came around from the side of the box, greeted Mr. Summers gravely and selected a slip of paper from the box” (130). This situation is obviously inappropriate as it is hardly the time nor place for warm greetings bettween friends; someone may be called upon to be murdered at the hands of their friends and family. Mr. Graves is the one to collect the papers of the family that drew the slip with the black dot. The story says, Mr. Graves had selected the five slips and put them in the box, and he dropped all the papers but those onto the ground where the breeze caught them and lifted them off” (131). Afterward, Mr. Graves appears to understand the seriousness of the lottery and the damage it does to the person who “wins.” However, he still does not seem to want to question the consequences of the lottery has on every one year after year and blindly chooses to conform. The irony used in the story helps strengthen the story as it articulates obedience when it proves to be doing more harm than good. The names help show how no one chooses to break away from the tradition due to being scared of the consequences that would follow which further develops the thoughts and actions of characters.

Conclusion

Symbolism and irony are two literary devices that helped develop the short stories “A Good Man is Hard to Find” and “The Lottery”. Through the use of these devices, the author is able to establish a fundamental theme and explain the characters’ thoughts and actions. “A Good Man is Hard to Find” involves a struggle between good and evil. The grandmother personifies the goodness that can be found within people. The opposite can be said for the Misfit as he represents evil and is unable to empathize with others. “The Lottery” represents a struggle within a community to abandon a long-lasting tradition and question the morality of the littery while blindly conforming to the tradition. Irony and symbolism are seen collaborating together in both short stories to add more conclusive meanings to the work and to develop the reader’s perception that extends beyond the written words. Both authors utilize special techniques used with literary devices in an effective manner that enables both stories to excel in its ability to tell a story and leave hidden meanings for the reader to decipher.  

Works Cited

1. O'Connor, Flannery. 'A Good Man Is Hard to Find.' The Norton Anthology of American Literature, edited by Nina Baym et al., W.W. Norton & Company, 2018, pp. 177-186.
2. Jackson, Shirley. 'The Lottery.' The Lottery and Other Stories, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1991, pp. 119-127.