Updated:

Knowledge and the Loss of Innocence: “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” Essay

Exclusively available on Available only on IvyPanda® Made by Human No AI

The term “loss of innocence” is now being widely used in different spheres, especially in philosophy. This notion is usually associated with human age, meaning that getting older can lead people far from what they were at the very beginning, in their childhood. Indeed, the older a person is, the less naïve and lighthearted they are, the less confident they become about their own views.

But is this the knowledge alone that makes people lose their innocence? There is an opinion that “A gain in knowledge is a loss of innocence…a greater learning about social reality destroys old verities (truths) and induces uncertainty. Learning about the social world can be a threat”. Obviously, there is a grain of truth in this idea.

Analysis

Indeed, in the modern world the old verities and values are forgotten, people seem to be really different from what they were in the past. If earlier people were more modest and reserved, now they became really open, and sometimes even rude. The reason for such change is development of communication systems and technologies. An essay “A good man is hard to find” by Flannery O’Connor also illustrates how knowledge about social reality can destroy the old truths.

The main character, a grandmother, who was a real lady, was indignant at how people have changed to worse in comparison with her time. She recalled that in her time “children were more respectful of their native states and their parents and everything else” (O’Connor, 64), and that “People are certainly not nice like they used to be” (O’Connor, 68), etc.

However, the grandmother’s knowledge about society is very little in comparison with the Misfit’s one. He appeared to be a very rude man, who had the family of two parents and three little kids killed. In addition, he shot the grandmother himself, even though they had a nice conversation just before.

He did it in a very cold way: he “shot her three times through the chest” (O’Connor, 84). Why would he do this? Why was he so cruel? The answer is simple: the man lost his innocence because of socializing: “I been most everything” (O’Connor, 79). The man had many occupations, met many people, and some of the experiences were not really pleasant: “I even seen a woman flogged” (O’Connor, 79). Obviously, this experiences made the man tough, and they left no place for sensitivity in his hard.

Another example of how threatening the knowledge about social world can be is the essay ”A small good thing” by Raymond Carver. He author shows how a pair of “happy and, so far, lucky” parents, Howard and Ann, turn into angered beasts ready to kill someone (Carver, 3).

The reason for that is the gain of knowledge about social reality. The doctor, who failed to save their beloved song, Scotty, a negro boy, who was accidentally killed, the baker, who caused pain by reminding about their son – all these people took away the innocence of the pair. The character of baker, too, serves as an example of innocence loss.

The man realized “the sense of doubt and limitation that had come to him in his middle years” (Carver, 37). These feelings were caused by his experience of communication with different social groups, which once more proves, how harmful social world can be for an individual.

The character of another short story also became a victim of knowledge. Josephine from Kate Chopin’s “The story of an hour” was so shocked by the news about her husband’s death, that she demanded: “Free! Body and soul free!” (Chopin, 47). However, the long-awaited freedom only reached her with death.

More about A Good Man is Hard to Find

The heroine died at the moment she saw her husband, who was actually alive and safe. Did she die because of happiness? Doubtfully so. Josephine could not bare the fact that she was mislead by other people; by the time her husband appeared, her soul was already dead. This is one of the horrifying results of learning about society. We can assume that if she did not talk to her husband’s friend, Richard, who told about the news, she would live long and happily. But it was knowledge that killed her.

Conclusion

As it can be seen, gain of knowledge about social world can often be dangerous. Without a doubt, knowledge of this kind leads to the loss of innocence.

Works Cited

Carver, Raymond. Cathedral. London: Vintage, 1989.

Chopin, Kate. The Story of an Hour. London: Vogue, 1894.

O’Connor, Flannery. A Good Man Is Hard to Find and Other Stories. NY: Mariner Books, 1977.

More related papers Related Essay Examples
Cite This paper
You're welcome to use this sample in your assignment. Be sure to cite it correctly

Reference

IvyPanda. (2018, July 8). Knowledge and the Loss of Innocence: "A Good Man Is Hard to Find". https://ivypanda.com/essays/loss-of-innocence/

Work Cited

"Knowledge and the Loss of Innocence: "A Good Man Is Hard to Find"." IvyPanda, 8 July 2018, ivypanda.com/essays/loss-of-innocence/.

References

IvyPanda. (2018) 'Knowledge and the Loss of Innocence: "A Good Man Is Hard to Find"'. 8 July.

References

IvyPanda. 2018. "Knowledge and the Loss of Innocence: "A Good Man Is Hard to Find"." July 8, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/loss-of-innocence/.

1. IvyPanda. "Knowledge and the Loss of Innocence: "A Good Man Is Hard to Find"." July 8, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/loss-of-innocence/.


Bibliography


IvyPanda. "Knowledge and the Loss of Innocence: "A Good Man Is Hard to Find"." July 8, 2018. https://ivypanda.com/essays/loss-of-innocence/.

If, for any reason, you believe that this content should not be published on our website, please request its removal.
Updated:
This academic paper example has been carefully picked, checked and refined by our editorial team.
No AI was involved: only quilified experts contributed.
You are free to use it for the following purposes:
  • To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
  • As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
  • As a template for you assignment
Privacy Settings

IvyPanda uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, enabling functionalities such as:

  • Basic site functions
  • Ensuring secure, safe transactions
  • Secure account login
  • Remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
  • Remembering privacy and security settings
  • Analyzing site traffic and usage
  • Personalized search, content, and recommendations
  • Displaying relevant, targeted ads on and off IvyPanda

Please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy for detailed information.

Required Cookies & Technologies
Always active

Certain technologies we use are essential for critical functions such as security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and ensuring the site operates correctly for browsing and transactions.

Site Customization

Cookies and similar technologies are used to enhance your experience by:

  • Remembering general and regional preferences
  • Personalizing content, search, recommendations, and offers

Some functions, such as personalized recommendations, account preferences, or localization, may not work correctly without these technologies. For more details, please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy.

Personalized Advertising

To enable personalized advertising (such as interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. These partners may have their own information collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won't stop you from seeing IvyPanda ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a "sale" or "sharing" of the information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have the right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy.

1 / 1