Perseverance In Eudora Welty's The Worn Path

Perseverance is a groundwork that provides the self-determination to accomplish dreams. Eudora Welty’s short story "The Worn Path" is set in the middle of the twentieth century at the time when African Americans were still facing discrimination. Welty tells the story of Phoenix, an old African American woman, who walks through the wilderness more often than not in order to obtain medicine for her sick grandson. The journey in to the town would not be very difficult to the average person. However, because Phoenix is so old and frail the trip is very difficult for her; she must overcome many obstacles to reach her destination. Perseverance and determination allow Phoenix to accomplish her goal of getting the medicine.
Welty uses many things …show more content…
She feels great compassion for her grandson and without this feeling of love; she probably would not have had the determination to travel through all of the hurdles. She even goes on to say that the grandson is the reason why she made her long trip. At one point, Phoenix temporarily forgets why she made the trip. Once she remembers, her sympathy for her grandson shines through: “We is the only two left in the world. He suffer and it don't seem to put him back at all. He got a sweet look. He going to last. He wear a little patch quilt and peep out holding his mouth open like a little bird. . . . I could tell him from all the others in creation” (98). Another way she proves her love for her grandson would be when she stole the nickel from the hunter in the woods. Yet, when it is revealed that she had stolen the money to buy her grandson a paper windmill, it is clear how selfless her act was. She's took the money to buy a present for her grandson and not something for herself. Her desire to take care of him has been her mo0tivation the whole time, but that isn’t revealed until the end of the story. The strong yearning Phoenix has to heal her grandson encourages her to keep