The Scarlet Ibis By James Hurst: Character Analysis

"Brother, Brother, don't leave me" (Hurst 441). "The Scarlet Ibis" by James Hurst is a compelling story about love and betrayal. The story is centered around two young boys, Brother and Doodle. Doodle was born physically disabled, but over the course of the story Brother helps him defy all odds by teaching him how to first crawl, then walk, but only for his own selfish reasons. At first, Brother was embarrassed by Doodle and even plotted his death, but by the end of the story, they were closer than ever before. Throughout the story, the boys go on many adventures together, but their final one ends with a violent storm and death. Some people claim Brother is innocent because without his help Doodle wouldn't of had a life; however, Brother is guilty because if he would not have taught him how to walk, Doodle would still be living. Starting at a young age, self-centered Brother has always wanted Doodle out of his life, just because he was embarrassed to have a disabled …show more content…
Doodle was such a "burden" to Brother that he wouldn't tow him around, even though Doodle wasn't capable of walking at the time. In fact, Brother tried to injure Doodle by getting him hurdled out of the wagon when his mother forced him to let poor Doodle come along. "To discourage his coming with me, I'd run with him across the ends of the cotton rows and careen him around corners on two wheels" (431). This quote displays how heartless Brother is to try and injure his already disabled brother. If Brother had been nicer and included Doodle in his younger years, then maybe Doodle would've developed earlier or at a more rapid pace than he did. Earlier in the story, Brother neglected Doodle because he wasn't normal, while Brother was the one who was holding him back from being normal by prohibiting him from having the experiences a normal child should