Two different paths: comparative analysis and outcomes

Elders, and especially elder females, feature infrequently as protagonists in literature. Phoenix in "A Worn Path" by Eurdora Welty and the grandmother in "A Good Man is Hard to Find" by Flannery O'Connor provide powerful examples of how elder women can exemplify core themes. Although they are from different backgrounds and have different life experiences, both elder women live in the south and share some common personality traits like stubornness.

Neither of the senior women in "A Worn Path" and "A Good Man is Hard to Find" allows their age to dictate what they can or cannot do, and in fact, seem younger than their years. In "A Worn Path," Phoenix Jackson is described as "very old and small." She walks with a cane and she has wrinkles, but her hair is "still black." She also notes, "I wasn't as old as I thought," after setting out on her little journey. Likewise, The grandmother in "A Good Man is Hard to Find" has few overtly geriatric features, dresses ornately, and thinks of herself as a "lady." Like Phoenix, the Grandmother is going on a journey that is the defining element of their stories. Both women are referred to as their role as "granny" or "grandmother," a designation that refers as much to their status as seniors in the community as to their actually having grandchildren. While Phoenix is black and the Grandmother in "A Good Man is Hard to Find" is white, both of the old women have lived their entire lives in the south. Their age imparts a wealth of experience in how they view the social conventions that have changed over the years and remain connected to their past via nostalgia.

Although their journeys bring them to different places, both grandmothers encounter a gun in the story that raises questions about morality and values in the South. For Phoenix, the issue of race does play into her interaction with the man with the gun. When he points it at Phoenix, she does not flinch. Instead, she "stood straight and faced him." Previously, the old man had said, "I know you old colored people! Wouldn't miss going to town to see Santa Claus!" The racial reference triggered a "a fierce and different radiation" in the old lady, which was likely due to her having lived a whole life filled with racial epithets. She does not let it bother her, nor the gun. She stands up to the old man, just as the grandmother in "A Good Man is Hard to Find" does. The man tells Phoenix, "You must be a hundred years old, and scared of nothing." Although the Grandmother in "A Good Man is Hard to Find" does seem scared, she does talk directly with The Misfit in a way that reveals her courage.

The main difference between the Grandmother in O'Connor's story and Phoenix in Welty's is that the latter comes across as wiser in her years, which is why she lives to see the end of her story. The Grandmother in "A Good Man is Hard to Find" cannot keep her mouth shut. Her inability to remain silent, and her arrogant belief that she can change The Misfit is what gets her shot in the end, just as her lie about her memory is what gets the family into trouble in the first place. Phoenix, on the other hand, is more stoic and calm under pressure. When the man does point the gun at her, nothing happens and she is able to achieve her goal. The Grandmother in "A Good Man is Hard to Find" has no goal to achieve.