Doodle In The Scarlet Ibis

Those who are different seem to have lower expectations. Many of those disabled children weren’t meant to live past birth, but yet they defied expectation and achieved their goals. This is because of their will, mental strength, determination, and pride. This is similar to the story of Doodle. On the surface, Doodle may only appear as a small, fragile boy, but on the inside he is great and strong. The Scarlet Ibis is incredibly majestic and sadly beautiful, but yet it fell so quickly. In that way, the bird seems to represent Doodle. The book, “The Scarlet Ibis”, by James Hurst, tells the story of a fragile and seemingly weak young boy that wasn’t meant to live past birth. Although he is incredibly doubted by his family and all others, he fights for his life, and is able to do things no one would have thought he could do. This boy, disabled, small, and weak later emerges as a strong, determined, and caring human being that can overcome impossible challenges. The story begins with the narrator, Doodle’s older brother, sadly remembering the times he had with his sibling. The …show more content…
He has amazing mental strength. Even as a small child, he was able to defy all expectations. “The doctor said that with his weak heart this strain would probably kill him, but it didn’t.” (Hurst 595) First, doctors said that he wouldn’t survive past a few days, but he obviously did. It wasn’t about luck, it was about will. Doodle fought for his life and he won. Doodles older brother, the narrator, was ashamed of his disabled brother. Though cruel, this led him to teach Doodle to walk. At first, the goal was farther than they could’ve imagined, but with Doodle’s hard work and persistence, they achieved it. When his brother is treating him with cruelty, as he often does, he runs as fast as he can, doubtfully expecting Doodle to catch up. To his surprise, Doodle does. Doodle didn’t summon that strength for himself, he did it to make his brother