My paper is on “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst. This short story was published in 1960 by the Atlantic Monthly. James made this story to entertain his readers and to instill into their heads that no matter how bad something is it has worth. And that having to much pride can hurt others more than you know. And these themes will show in the middle and end of the short story when they see the Scarlet Ibis. This story has no factual connection to the life of James Hurst because he had no younger brother or younger brother born with a handicap.
James Hurst was born in October 8, 1922 in Jacksonville, North Carolina. He got interested in doing short stories in his spare time while he was working as a banker at the Chase Manhattan …show more content…
William Armstrong, or Doodle, is six years old throughout the story and was the one born with a physically retarted. Even though his brother has tough love for him he loves him unconditionally throughout the story and does not want to leave his side and does not want him to leave him behind. Extraordinarily, he goes above and beyond his disabilities to learn how to walk and run because his brother asked him to learn. But to relate him to the story; Doodle importance to this story is very great. He is used an example of how pride can hurt others more than you …show more content…
Foreshadow is one that can be noticed in the scarlet ibis. Evidence of this is when the scarlet ibis dies in their yard and doodle goes back to bury it Aunt Nicey says that is a bad omen coming when a bird dies especially a red bird. Also, it foreshadows how doodle is going to die when his bother leaves him during the storm and comes back and find him sprawled out like how the ibis was. Flashback was another one because throughout the short story he tells us things and evidence that on person would know at that moment that it happen. And in the beginning of the second paragraph he says: “It is strange that all this is still so clear to me, now that summer has long since fled and time has had its way (Hurst 1).” Symbolism also appears in the story too. Scarlet ibises are birds that need birds of its kind around it for it to strive and survive and if it does not it will be a matter of time before it will die. It symbolized how Doodle is dependent on his big brother for his survival but he abandons him and he dies. And Doodle feels a connection to the bird the first time he sees it because it is an outcast of its own kind like him. It is not doing so well just like him and it is delicate and fragile like Doodle