Eudora Welty uses her main character, Phoenix Jackson, to symbolize and represent the hardships that African Americans, women and others faced during the early and mid-1900’s in her short story “A Worn Path”, and also shows that hard work and perseverance can help achieve any goal one has in mind. Phoenix is a very strong character that embodies the true meaning of perseverance and never giving up. Throughout the story, she faces obstacles living and non-existent. Along her journey, she faces trees, fences, ditches and other obstacles in nature, but she also encounters obstacles imagined by society such as, racism, sexism, ageism and classism. She encounters a white male hunter that helps her out of a ditch, but then points a gun at her
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She is also seen as a charity case by the nurse at the doctor’s office because she is old and poor, but Phoenix seems unbothered by it. These were all difficult to overcome because during that time period many people thought it was better to be white, better to be a man, youth was valued and money usually meant power. The name of the character Phoenix also has a very significant meaning in the story. The name Phoenix means to rise anew from the ashes, which represents the main character quite well in this story. She takes this long and treacherous journey into town to pick up medicine for her sick grandson. The author implies that Phoenix has taken this journey several times before and despite the odds, she “rises from the ashes” again to go and care for her grandson. The nurses and Phoenix talk about her grandson and his health and Phoenix says “So the time come around, and I go on another trip for the soothing medicine.” (96). This shows her will and determination to care for her grandson and carries the theme of perseverance with it. Phoenix Jackson is a static character throughout Welty’s story and remains the same. The reader does not get the privilege to know Phoenix on a deeper personal level or see her change in the story, but the author uses Phoenix to represent a much
She is also seen as a charity case by the nurse at the doctor’s office because she is old and poor, but Phoenix seems unbothered by it. These were all difficult to overcome because during that time period many people thought it was better to be white, better to be a man, youth was valued and money usually meant power. The name of the character Phoenix also has a very significant meaning in the story. The name Phoenix means to rise anew from the ashes, which represents the main character quite well in this story. She takes this long and treacherous journey into town to pick up medicine for her sick grandson. The author implies that Phoenix has taken this journey several times before and despite the odds, she “rises from the ashes” again to go and care for her grandson. The nurses and Phoenix talk about her grandson and his health and Phoenix says “So the time come around, and I go on another trip for the soothing medicine.” (96). This shows her will and determination to care for her grandson and carries the theme of perseverance with it. Phoenix Jackson is a static character throughout Welty’s story and remains the same. The reader does not get the privilege to know Phoenix on a deeper personal level or see her change in the story, but the author uses Phoenix to represent a much