The Misfit is a complex character created by Flannery O'Connor. We talk about him first when the grandmother reads his criminal record at the breakfast table. Just as the Misfit meets the family, Grandma begins to question his faith and his past, and through Grandma's persistent behavior you discover the truth behind the Misfit's tough exterior. The reader understands that the Misfit was raised by parents who were "the nicest people in the world" (O'Connor 1312). With this kind of background, how can one expect the Misfit to be such a cold-blooded killer? Due to his gentle nature at the beginning of the story, it is almost impossible to understand how he could simply kill. Through deeper analysis one can characterize the Misfit as having a heart of gold, but the mind of a villain. This characterization is true because at one point he was wrongly accused of killing his father and was brutally punished and mistreated by the justice system. The Misfit knows he is innocent and neither Jesus nor the justice system could free him from the punishment he has received. It's not because he's a bad person, he says himself: “I was never a bad guy that I remember... but at some point I did something wrong and I was sent to penitentiary. I was buried alive” (1314). The Misfit claims that he has never been the worst person, but he also says himself that he has never been good, so the reason behind the Misfit's murderous condition is not because he is an evil person but because of his distrust in Jesus Christ and in the judicial system. The Misfit's distrust of Jesus is visible everywhere. The Misfit doesn't trust Jesus because he's never been a bad guy, so he can't understand how a once good man can get pu...... middle of paper ......the two systems of which the Misfit does not trust inside, but follows carefully. The Misfit tells the reader “My father said I was a different breed of dog than my brothers and sisters. “You know,” Dad said, “there are some who can live their whole lives without asking for anything and others need to know why, and this boy is one of the latter.” He'll take care of everything!' " (O'Connor 1312). The Misfit has never backed down from anything, which is why his life is the way it is. The Misfit was the only one, not good but not the worst, to take a stand and to ask the justice system and his religion why. These are the two belief systems that most will never question, which is why the Misfit is such a controversial character. He will never stop asking and will go against anything to do what he sees fit, whether it's killing a man or changing his tire..