Examples Of Marxistism In A Worn Path

Perceived by Society
Throughout reading A Worn Path, I realized that the most important part of this story was not one particular line but rather an unwavering theme. Mrs. Jackson had almost nothing to her name and yet when to great lengths, especially considering her age, to try and get medicine for her grandson and yet, she is still criticized by the society in which she lives. As stated in the text, they are the only two left in their families. As she made her long journey to the town, not once throughout the narrative did Phoenix complain or get upset about anything, this is remarkable considering her current endeavor. That endeavor consists of a poverty-stricken and a very old black woman walking countless lengthy miles towards …show more content…
Jackson as she ventures forth on her journey, the task can be narrowed down by using a critical lens to look through. When looking at all the different numerous types of lens that one could adopt for this assignment, there are a diverse amount of options in which to chose. When faced with the task of selecting a lens, I knew which one would use in this essay from the start. Marxism was the one that stuck out the more so than any other, as it deals with the idea of class and the way one would typically be treated due to their standing within a given society and why. In my own option and comprehension, the Marxist viewpoint, it is, by far, the most straightforward and effect lens out of the collection for analyzing the social interactions within A Worn Path. A Marxist will narrow down their search by only looking at key subjects such as social interaction and class roles, as well as the repercussions of these different demeanors. For example, when one is trying to understand the actions of a particular person, such as the hunter and his hound, observing his social class and economical rank will give insight to why he acted as such, as they correspond to the society in which they reside. Often times, the combination of both class and how a particular society treats this class can reveal otherwise unknown information about a character or group of characters. A key example that a Marxist perspective would analyze is how in A …show more content…
Also in these few set of lines, it is quite clear that Phoenix Jackson is not of high social standing, this is first noted with her conversation with the hunter as he talks down to her due to her race and class, as well as by her physical description (Welty). As she trips and stumbles throughout her quest to the town, one can tell that Mrs. Phoenix Jackson has a peculiar aura about regarding her own thoughts and how she deals with certain social situations. This could very well be due to what type of world she grew up in. More often than not, Phoenix talks to herself as if she is slowly working out a problem in her but out loud. This type on unorthodox method of thinking leads to her being treated differently even more so differently, such as in the clinic and how the workers there behaved poorly (Welty). This one type of motif, more so than any others possible theme, reveals a fair amount about how Mrs. Jackson has adapted to her abusive and unfair society. This is beautifully illustrated when the hunter scene of the narrative occurs. She encounters a white and rather questionable man in the woods and because oftentimes people assume so much at an initial glance, he thinks that because her clothes are tattered and that the pigmentation of her skin is dark, that he is therefore the