...“The Road Not Taken” and “A Worn Path” From their titles, we realize these short stories will take us on a literary journey but what we do not realize are the choices and obstacles the protagonists encounter that adds dimension to the story. The readers’ perceptions about the events are changed by the symbolism surrounding the characters and the conflicts that are presented. “A Worn Path” is a character story told in a third-person point of view about an elderly, colored woman and her journey along a path she has taken many time before. Throughout the story Phoenix is involved in conflict by struggling against nature, social conditions and against her own physical circumstances. From the characters name alone we instantly envision a strong individual, the name implies a mythological creature that it said to be as large as an eagle, with brilliant scarlet and gold plumage. It was said that only one phoenix existed at any one time with a life expectancy of at least 500 years. As the phoenix approached the end of life, it would build a nest, set fire to it and would die in fire to only rise from the ashes and be stronger. Ironically, Phoenix has her hair in a red rag which correlates with the scarlet plumage of the ancient bird. Her name combined with the first two paragraphs deliver a meticulous description of our character: Far out in the country there was an old Negro woman with her head tied in a red rag, coming along a path through the pinewoods. ...
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...In “A Worn Path” by Eudora Welty the author brings you into her short story by utilizing such realistic storytelling and description that as your read, you are not just reading words, you are seeing the story unfold for you in your mind. It is as though you are watching a movie. The description of the old women on the path, the environment as she walks and the attitudes of the people she comes into contact with all blend together to make it not only a story but more like a lesson in history. Phoenix Jackson is “...an old Negro woman with her head tied in a red rag...” and “…wore an old dress reaching down to her shoe tops, and an equally long apron of bleached sugar sacks..”. As would be expected of this time in history, she was probably not far removed from slavery and thus was still living in poverty so her clothes were what she could come by or make herself from everyday items. To add even more realism of character, Welty describes her as “Her skin had a pattern all its own of numberless branching wrinkles and as though a whole little tree stood in the middle of her forehead…”. In your mind’s eye, you can picture this small little old woman facing a path faced with hardship and danger, but with no inkling of fear or worry by her in her journey she is facing. The hardship of an elderly women embarking on a long walk to town is daunting in itself, but Welty realistically describes other hardships secondary to her environment that causes us to have even more admiration...
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...Hannah Doe Dr. Whitton EH 104 February 7, 2013 The Path of Life In Eudora Welty’s “A Worn Path,” the main character, Phoenix Jackson, is embarked on a very important journey to town. The reason for her trip is to retrieve medication for her ill grandson who swallowed lye years before. The reader has reason to believe that her grandson is no longer living, but Phoenix embarks on this journey every month regardless. This trip is what gives meaning to her life. In “A Worn Path,” the journey that Phoenix Jackson goes on for the medication is a symbol for the journey people take throughout life to find purpose. In the story, the long and tiring trip is Phoenix Jackson’s purpose. It keeps her going month after month. Just as people do in life, she has to overcome obstacles on her way to town. These obstacles are what define the journey for a purpose. Her main deterrent is the people she encounters, which is also true with life. People always seem to interfere with and get in the way of others. The first person that stands in her way is a hunter that she stumbles upon in the woods. He is rude to her and tries to get her to turn around and go home after learning of her destination. He even goes so far as to put his gun in her face. Phoenix stands her ground and refuses to give in to the hunter. Not only does the man not frighten her, she hustles a nickel out of him after he drops it. This is a perfect example of how people should handle situations in life....
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...Daniel Washington June 23rd, 2015 English 120 Section 56281-601 Literary Analysis Essay 2 Striving Despite All Odds In The Deep South The short story “A Worn Path” by Edora Weltty (1909-2001), Is about a elderly African American woman who, despite her deteriorating mental health and old age, manages to leave no stone unturned to accomplish her goal. Life as a African American in the deep south in the early 1940’s was unyielding. The “separate but equal” Jim Crow laws were still in effect. Mississippi was thought to be in the heart of it all. This is where the plot begins where we are introduced to Phoenix Jackson, where she makes her humble journey. At this moment, some of the stories conflict comes into play. At first, there is a erect hill, which appears to lofty to climb, but somehow she operates a way to climb it. This is one of the first of many conflicts she manages to bring about. Jackson proves that she won’t be defeated so easily. When she makes it to the bottom of the hill, she cautiously walks across log over a large creek. Phoenix needs to catch her breath, and at this moment in the story a new conflict arises. This particular conflict isn’t the wild animals or unkempt terrain, the conflict is herself. Phoenix Jackson begins to hallucinate. She sees a young child (possibly her grandson) handing a plate of cake to her. She soon realizes that she is fantasizing when she tries to reach for ...
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...A Worn Path The short story I read "A Worn Path" by Eudora Welty, is the tale of the unstoppable love and care of a grandmother for her grandson. It tells a story of determination of Phoenix Jackson "an elder Negro woman" and how she walks a journey through the woods and fields on her way to town to get medicine for her chronically ill grandson. As she begins her journey, she talks to herself and warns, "Out of my way, all you foxes, owls, beetles, jack rabbits, coons and wild animals!…Keep out from under these feet, little bob-whites…Keep the big wild hogs out of my path" (Welty 306), because as she says, "I got a long way" (Welty 306). She has taken several times before, and now "The time come around"(Welty 309), and she must travel it again. "Her eyes were blue with age. Her skin has a pattern all its own of numberless branching wrinkles" (Welty 306). “She was very old and small and she walked slowly in the dark pine shadows, moving a little from side to side in her steps, with the balanced heaviness and lightness of a pendulum in a grandfather clock” (Welty 306). The description of Phoenix Jackson and how she is walking through her journey at the beginning of the story symbolizes how difficult this trip is for her and what she is facing as an elderly woman such as herself for her unstoppable love and care of her grandson. She supports herself with a cane, striving not to fall with every step she takes just adds to her difficulties. Phoenix is determined to...
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...Literary works are often comprised of symbolisms that convey a message to the reader. In the two literary works, A Worn Path by Eudora Welty and The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost, symbolism is used to capture the nature of both pieces. They both reflect a journey through imagery and metaphors. Each literary work has its unique way of expressing its message, one through the alliteration, ambiguity and visual sensation of poetry, and the other through a short, but evocative story about an elderly woman on her journey through a long, treacherous path. The Worn Path begins with an African-American grandmother that has begun her journey to get medicine for her grandson who lives in ‘town’. Her name is Phoenix Jackson and is described as an elderly woman on a mission. The beginning of the story explains that she is making her way down a long and difficult path to retrieve a much needed medicine that will help cure her grandson’s ailment. The dialect and manner in which the story is told suggests that the story takes place in the late 19th century after the ‘Surrender’ or a reference to the defeat of the Confederate army and the victory of the Union. It also makes implies that Phoenix resides in the south, or what would be the former Confederacy. Phoenix begins her path without question; only after the exposition does she glance back to where she had first begun her path. “After she got to the top she turned and gave a full, severe look behind her where she had come. "Up through...
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...ENG 125 Prof. Julie Pal-Agrawal February 13, 2012 “The Road not Taken” and “A Worn Path” Different but the Same Whether reading a short story or a poem, there is always a story to be found within. The authors of these scripts are able to capture readers with the utilization of characterization, rhythm, or a fairytale setting throughout their narrative. It is imagination that sanctions the reader of these literary forms to be able to mentally visualize what the author would like the reader to visually perceive by use of symbolism or descriptive wording. A short story and poem, no matter how structurally different are two literary pieces where a rich story is embedded. Readers are drawn towards these scripts by means of rhythm (poem), characterization, or a fictional setting in their respective narratives. However, the mere script would not make it entertaining enough. It would depend on the imagination of the readers as they are reading the literary script. Every reader has their own way of visualizing the descriptions and symbolism used by the author. In the poem “The Road Not Taken” or short story “A Worn Path.” – There is a prevalent theme. No matter what solitary journey we find ourselves on, ‘we’ determine how the journey ends. “Do not follow where the path may lead... Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail."-Robert Frost Everyone is a traveler, choosing the roads to...
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...“The Worn Path”, by Eudora Welty tells the story of an elderly grandmother as she walks into the city to retrieve throat medicine for her grandson. Joseph Campbell describes the archetypal hero’s journey in A Hero With A Thousand Faces. Phoenix’s journey corresponds to the hero’s journey. Helpers along the way, entering the unknown, and tests that occur on the journey help to correspond Phoenix’s journey with a hero’s journey. One way Phoenix’s journey is similar to the hero’s journey is that she encounters helpers along the way. Campbell states that a hero will meet multiple helpers along his journey (69). One helper Phoenix encounters is the wagon track. Phoenix says “‘This the easy place. This the easy going’” (490). The wagon track is a helper because the barren path makes it easier for elderly Phoenix to walk. Another helper is the woman who ties Phoenix’s shoe. After Phoenix arrives to...
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...The theme of “A Worn Path, by Eudora Welty” is that in other to get through life's hardship one has to be determined. Phoenix, an African-American woman, the main character in this story showed a lot of determination. In the story, Phoenix faced a lot of obstacles as she journeyed to town. She speaks to herself loudly while walking to town “ keep the wild hogs out of my path. Don't let none of those running in my direction . I got a long way”. The author wants us to learn about determination because although, there were thorns, wild animals and a lot of other barriers stopping her from reaching her destination and achieving her goal, Phoenix was determined to get to town. She didn't let the thorns , animals or even the distance stop her from...
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...In “A Worn Path”, Eudora Welty uses a narrator as a non-participating character to reveal hidden characteristics of the protagonist, Phoenix Jackson, in order to convey the theme of perseverance and unconditional love to the reader. The narrator impartially suggests that Phoenix is an “old negro woman” with “eyes blue with age”. Although these characteristics are basic, they blossom into complex traits of the protagonist that shadow her astounding tenacity. As the audience, we know Phoenix’s age, since the narrator mentioned her elderliness multiple times. Considering that the narrator objectively shares this information, the reader knows how the difficulties she faced on her trek, from having “to go through a barbed-wire fence” to falling into a ditch “like a little puff of milkweed”, add into a critical characterization of the protagonist that, in the end, alludes to the theme. Despite her elderly age, Phoenix’s refusal to end the...
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...in Eudora Welty's 'A Worn Path'." The International Fiction Review 28, nos. 1 and 2 (2001): 32–41. Quoted as "Phoenix Has No Coat: Historicity, Eschatology, and Sins of Omission in Eudora Welty's 'A Worn Path'" in Bloom, Harold, ed. Eudora Welty, Updated Edition, Bloom's Modern Critical Views. New York: Chelsea House Publishing, 2006. Bloom's Literature. Facts On File, Inc. Web. 30 Oct. 2015. Betha offers a critical view of the short story “A Worn Path”, she provides a description of Phoenix Jackson, who is the main character of the short story. She provides a list of difficulties that Phoenix Jackson encounters while doing her journey. Betha describes Phoenix as a woman that has not coat. She gives the interpretations that she has about this story, and along with other critics she describes the historical importance of Phoenix Jackson in the short story “A Worn Path”. She mentions perseverance in the way she describes the attitude Phoenix has towards the difficulties she encounters in her path. Additionally, she mentions other difficulties that Phoenix encounters during her life: Racism, poverty, slavery and many others. These stones that she found during her path were obstacles that gave her...
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...In Eudora Welty’s “A Worn Path,” there are many symbolic features that serve to enhance the description of Phoenix Jackson’s journey to town. From the biblical references and birds, to the protagonist’s name, and the windmill, Welty effectively implements a series of symbols to further develop the true meaning behind Jackson’s journey. There are many examples of symbols in “A Worn Path,” that symbolize biblical events. Phoenix says, “…and the good Lord made his snakes to curl up and sleep in the winter. A pleasure I don’t see no two-headed snake coming around that tree, where it come once. It took a while to get by him, back in the summer” (385). The snake symbolizes the serpent among the Garden of Eden who tempts Eden to stray from her intended...
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...Subtle Tones of Racism in “A Worn Path” Eudora Welty’s short story titled “A Worn Path” is a glimpse into the past and the double standard that African American’s suffered during the time. Phoenix is a poor, uneducated woman from the country whose strong moral fiber will not allow her age, rampant racism or her obvious poverty to deter her from her goal of making it to town. She must make it through the many obstacles of the wilderness including the forest, swamp, and unmarked corn fields with only an umbrella repurposed as a cane. When she does encounter another soul along the way she is threatened with a gun and fighting dogs. Finally arriving to her destination she is treated like an annoyance rather than a human being. Upon starting her journey, Phoenix Jackson is described as “an old Negro woman with her head tied in a red rag” (Welty 464). She is wearing what are obviously repurposed materials that she had made into a dress and apron, but she takes care not to snag or tear the clothing on the various thorns along her journey, a trait of the colored elderly of the time as she knew it would be hard to come by more materials. Phoenix has an old umbrella she uses as a cane both for protection and for help seeing what is ahead of her as her vision was not what it was. “Her eyes were blue with age” (Welty 464). Phoenix knows that if she did not complete this journey her grandson would suffer as there is no one to deliver or pick up the much needed medicine. If she was white...
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...story can carry the same message or make the same point or so we think. Just because they may fall under the same category does not mean that the carry the same meaning. For example “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost and “A Worn Road” by Welty are both about the directions that can be taken in life. We all at one or another are faced with having to make a choice that will affect us for the rest of our life. Some paths may lead us down the right road to happiness and wealth. While other paths, may lead us down heartache and sorrow. At the end it is up to us on how we live the life that we choose for your self’s. The two reading that I choose to compare and contrast are “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost and “A Worn Road” by Welty. As it looks at first glance they might be about the same thing, but in reality they are not. One is a poem and the other written as a short story. They both talk about the paths, roads and choice in life. “The Road Not Taken” is about a journey and choice and decision on what or which way to go in life and also the unknown. This poem is about the decision and the direction of life and where it might take you. The second is a short story about an old women and her journey in life. She recalls stories and the path that she has traveled many of times. On her travels she is dreaming and talking to herself and letting her imagination get the best of her. The first...
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...The Journey: Symbolism of “A Worn Path” and “The Road Not Taken” Expedition. Voyage. Excursion. Pilgrimage. There are many words that are used to describe the word journey but what does it really mean? Many people consider the word journey as merely a distance in which they have traveled or will eventually travel; often they fail to recognize that there can be great meaning beyond each step that is taken. Too often, people become more focused on the destination rather than the process that it takes to get them there. While focusing on destination people neglect to recognize the value of whole process that gets them there. A journey can bring forth exhilaration and excitement as well as agony and anguish. A journey always has a power which affects the lives of people and also changes their beliefs, thoughts and ideals, thus changing them ultimately. Have you ever taken a journey? We have all found ourselves on a journey of some kind or another alone, but what is more important is how we choose to end our journey. The two literary works that I have chosen to compare and contrast are “A Worn Path” by Eudora Welty and “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost. At first glance the two literary works appear to be about the same thing, but upon deeper reflection we conclude that they are not, as one is written as a short story and the other is written as a poem. The short story speaks of a “path” while the poem speaks of a “road.” The theme that each of these literary...
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