Although I had a great number of questions about the literary and symbolic aspects of the story (e.g., why does the mother of the grandchildren have no name, and why does she barely speak?), I was more concerned with The Misfit's relationship with religion and with the psychopathic mind itself.
The Misfit only kills the grandmother. He uses his underlings to order the murders of the three children, Bailey, and the unnamed mother. He has no conscience, no feelings of remorse, and has lost touch with reality where he can't even remember the crimes he committed--in my opinion, someone sane would probably be able to remember how they murdered their own father.
The Misfit is charming, and at first you think to trust him. But as Red Sam said, "'A good man is hard to find.'" People shouldn't trust blindly anymore. You have to lock your doors at night; you can't depend on people who charge their tabs. It reminded me a bit of how in Thornton Wilder's Our Town, Grover's Corners becomes less of that safe little small town. People become wary of each other. It's not that secure miniature world anymore. It's dangerous, and people can't be trusted.
Although The Misfit isn't suave or classy (he was shirtless, after all), the family does believe at first that The Misfit is an ordinary man who will help them. He might have helped them and not murdered them if the grandmother had kept her mouth shut. Most serial killers are the kinds of people whom you'd never expect to be offing people on a semi-regular basis. At first glance, they're nice, the kind of person you'd ask for a cup of sugar or have them house-sit while you're away for the weekend.
But underneath there's something twisted, something that isn't like what happens in the rest of our heads. There's a question I've heard of that criminal psychologists use when interviewing murderers. It goes as follows:
A young woman attends the funeral of a relative. There, she meets a handsome young man, and they hit it off immediately. The next week, this woman kills her sister. Why?
Depending on your answer, you may think like most people or you might think like a sociopath. I was confused by this question, and I said that maybe the young woman was afraid that the sister would steal the young beau. However, I get chills when people I know calmly reply the answer not long after I ask the question, "She thought that if she killed another relative, the man would show up to her sister's funeral." Creepy.
Ah, but I'm no longer discussing the story. The other part of the story was how much I disliked every single character. June Star is rude and selfish; John Wesley is disrespectful and mean. Bailey, the son, is self-centered and impatient, while not much information is given on the wife. The main character, the grandmother, who was no name that I could find, is also irritating. She's officious, self-righteous, and imperious. No wonder her child and grandchildren disrespect her and ignore her. The only thing in her world that matters is her. And yes, I do feel bad that they were taken off into the woods a couple at a time to be shot, but I couldn't empathize with them or feel remorse. Maybe I'm off my rocker, too.
The part of the story that confused me the most was the discussion of Jesus, prayer, and Jesus bringing back the dead. I understand the whole bit about how prayer can give you redemption and salvation for your sins, and the woman is praying for mercy from Jesus, but the rest of it is a bit fuzzy for me. How did Jesus throw things off balance? What is the whole "raising the dead" part about?
And my biggest question is why did the grandmother call The Misfit one of her own children and then touch him? And why did he react so negatively and harshly to her touch?
"'No pleasure but meanness.'"
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