Families: Family and Bobby Lee Essay

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What is Family? Guy Lafleur once said “When trouble comes, it's your family that supports you.” This is a simple yet powerful quote that expresses what family is all about. If a person hits a low point in life, their family will always be the first one to pick them back up and brush them off. However, in the story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor, one does not see a supporting family, but a dysfunctional family or a family that does not seem to care about one another. Sadly, a tragic ending is inevitable when a family does not support one another. The lack of support leading up to a family’s demise is apparent in the story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” as a result of the father not standing up for his family, the children acting heartless, and the grandmother only caring about her appearance. A jellyfish seems to have more of a spine than the father, Bailey, in this story. His cowardliness is the main cause of the family’s death in the end of the story. His entire family is stuck with a criminal, The Misfit, and his two henchmen, Hiram and Bobby Lee, near a dirt road that is not frequently traveled. Knowing that this criminal is going to have his entire family killed, Bailey does nothing. He does not try to compromise with The Misfit nor does he try to fight him. Rather, he lets himself and his son be pulled into the woods to be shot. O’Connor states, “Hiram pulled Bailey up by the arm as if he were assisting an old man. John Wesley caught hold of his father’s hand and Bobby Lee followed. They went off toward the woods” (O’Connor 96) Not once does Bailey attempt to escape or plead with The Misfit to save the children. He is a rag-doll, and the henchmen carried him along. Perhaps if Bailey did do something, then some of his family might have been spared. He could have fought the three fugitives while his family ran. His cowardice ultimately caused his family’s demise. However, it is not just Bailey’s cowardice that causes the demise, the children's apathetic nature plays a small role as well. The children are not only rude to others, but they do not care about anything. They do not seem to care that they are surrounded by three fugitives. Also, the daughter, June Star, does not seem to be bothered when her father and brother are pulled into the woods. However, what really shows the apathetic nature of these children is what was is remarked after the accident had happened. O’Connor mentions, “‘But Nobody’s killed.’ June Star said with disappointment” (O’Connor 67) They both seem elated that there was an accident and upset that nobody had died. The callous nature of these children shows just how detached this family is. Any family that cared for one another would be checking to make sure everyone is alright after an accident. If these children showed the slightest amount of emotion, things might have ended differently. The family would not be as detached, and they would be more closely knit and watch out for one another. Despite the fact that the father is a coward and the children are apathetic, the grandmother’s interest in her appearance is yet another reason for the family’s ending. Throughout the story the grandmother refers to herself as a lady. She
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