1. What traits does the grandmother possess that portray her as different from most stereotypical grandmothers? What do you observe in her interactions with the family at the beginning (Don’t miss the opening paragraph) and further into the story?
2. How can the grandmother be blamed, in fact, for the entire catastrophe that occurs at the end of the story? What “sin” motivates her behavior?
3. Look at the characters, excluding the Misfit. Are they likable or not? Does O’Connor’s choice of title for the story figure into a message for the reader?
4. What are some examples of foreshadowing in the story?
5. In the dialogue between the grandmother and the Misfit, how is the grandmother making an appeal to the Misfit? What is her motive? What kind of position does the Misfit take about the way he has chosen to live his life? Why, for example, has he committed himself to evil?
6. Where does the grandmother have an epiphany (Moment of Grace)? How does Bailey’s outlandish shirt, now on the Misfit, have significance?
