...Throughout the short story of “The Scarlet Ibis” James Hurst portrays that pride can be a constructive or a destructive thing. During this story, the character Brother uses his pride in ways that are helpful to Doodle, but in ways that are also harmful. As readers, people come to know the character Doodle as a delicate yet a beautiful being. There are things that others need to be careful of when with Doodle. There was “a long list of don’ts [that] went with him, all of which [Brother] ignored once [they] got out of the house.” This quote shows that Brother knew Doodle had limits, but decided to ignore them out of pride. Also, once Brother taught Doodle how to walk, there was a sense inside of him that made him believe that he could accomplish...
Words: 303 - Pages: 2
...sometimes be harmful. The tale The Scarlet Ibis by James Hurst is a great example of how pride can be harmful. The Scarlet Ibis revolves around two brothers, Doodle (who is disabled), and his older brother, the narrator. In the story, the narrator tries to teach Doodle to do things like an abled person. He succeeded with teaching Doodle to walk, so then his ego/pride starts growing...
Words: 640 - Pages: 3
...“I lay there crying, sheltering my fallen scarlet Ibis from the Heresy from the rain.” All the narrator wants is a “normal” brother. He tries his best the change his brother; all that leads to is death. Doodle is his brothers Scarlet Ibis, and Doodle dies because of his brother. His brother tries so hard to change who Doodle is and all that it leads to is a death. In the short story “The Scarlet Ibis”, James Hurst uses conflict, symbolism, and irony to develope the message that everyone needs to accept others for who they are, and not try to change them or the outcome will be negative. James Hurst uses internal conflict to show that changing others for selfish reasons can lead to tragic consequences. The main reason that Doodle can walk is because of the narrator’s selfish attitude of caring what others think. When the narrator says “I was embarrassed at having a brother who couldn’t walk”(336), his egotistical personality defiantly shows through; he is more concerned of what others think rather than the fact that his impaired brother is unable to walk (CS2). The only motivation to...
Words: 700 - Pages: 3
...use themes in their stories to relate to the reader and leave a specific message or moral for the reader to remember. In “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst the theme is to always have faith in someone’s potential and abilities, even if the odds are against them. The specific writing techniques James Hurst uses in his short story are foreshadowing, interesting dialogue, and inner conflict. The author uses foreshadowing to help prepare the reader for what is going to happen later in the story. During the story this is shown through the narrator’s feelings about Doodle, “I did not know then that pride is a wonderful, terrible thing, a seed that bears two vines, life and death.” (Hurst 3) The narrator is questioning his relationship with his brother Doodle, and how much he...
Words: 457 - Pages: 2
...Theme Essay In my family, I have a sister, mom, and, dad. When my sister was young, she went through a stage where she would wear the same pair of pants everyday. This annoyed me because, she had so many other clothes to choose from and still, she chose to wear those pants everyday. I would try to convince her to wear a different outfit, but she wouldn’t budge. In the story “The Scarlet Ibis”, Doodle's older brother was irritated by Doodles disability, because he wanted a normal brother. Because of this, he tried to make Doodle more normal by teaching him to walk. But Doodle's brother should have accepted him from the start In the story, “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, the theme, people don’t accept others who look different, is shown through tone. In the first place, people who are unique are...
Words: 675 - Pages: 3
...The Sharing of a Common Theme “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst and “The Interlopers” by Saki both share a common theme ‘appearance versus reality’. Though both of the articles have two completely different plots, they share an idea that is displayed throughout both stories. The theme may seem to have different levels of importance or appear in different parts of the stories, but it is present in both no matter what. Here is an example of how “The Scarlet Ibis” and “The Interlopers” both have the theme ‘appearance vs. reality’. The theme of appearance versus reality is displayed in the short story “The Scarlet Ibis” by illustrating Big Brother’s disappointment at having a disabled brother transformed to embarrassment and selfish desire of...
Words: 664 - Pages: 3
...In “The Scarlet Ibis”, written by James Hurst, and “The Cask of Amontillado”, written by Edgar Allan Poe, the characters in both works are the theme of Appearance versus Reality. The authors use Appearance versus Reality by revealing the cruel intentions of Montresor and the reality of how Doodle learned to walk. Both “The Scarlet Ibis” and “The Cask of Amontillado” are influenced by Appearance versus Reality as the plot progresses in both of these stories. The process of maturation in Doodle and Brother demonstrate the theme of Appearance versus Reality in “The Scarlet Ibis”. When Doodle was born, his family and the doctor presumed that he would not live to experience a full life. Even his own mother did not think that he would remain...
Words: 735 - Pages: 3
...James Hurst’s short story, “The Scarlet Ibis,” has a theme, pride is egregious, which Hurst demonstrates through a series of quotes with the main ideas of offering help only due to pride, the belief of infallibility, and pushing someone farther than their limits. The theme can be first expressed when Brother only teaches Doodle to walk only because of his pride. After Brother teaches Doodle to walk, he reflects upon his reasons of doing so in the excerpt,“They did not know that I did it for myself; that pride, whose slave I was, spoke to me louder than all their voices and that Doodle walked only because I was ashamed of having a crippled brother,”(Hurst, 4). In the previously mentioned situation pride is egregious because Brother is embarrassed about Doodles...
Words: 520 - Pages: 3
...The Two Meanings of Pride The story, the “Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst is about a young boy teaching his physically disabled brother, Doodle, how to become “normal.” The story surrounds the most powerful emotion, pride. The narrator was full of pride for his brother at times when he abled him to learn new things. The story expresses the idea that it is good to be full of pride for others, however, pushing people past their limits can be harmful. In the “Scarlet Ibis,” Doodle was pushed over his physical limit and suffered consequences. Several quotes in the story draw attention to the emotional theme, pride. Pride comes along with embarrassment. “When Doodle was five years old, I was embarrassed at having a brother of that age who...
Words: 352 - Pages: 2
...Guilt is an emotion caused by an action. These actions may be used for bad, or used for good, but for the wrong reason. In the short story “The Scarlet Ibis”, by James Hurst, a boy and his crippled brother, Doodle, create a good, but unhealthy relationship that causes problems in both lives. In James Hurst’s flashback, the most powerful emotion the narrator, Brother, expresses is guilt because at the end of every conflicted event, the narrator feels guilty. Brother feels guilty for his actions and strongly expresses the emotion guilt. While the narrator wants to kill his brother, he has a realization, “…’Mama,’ he smiled. ‘He’s all there! He’s all there!’ and he was” (Hurst 2). Brother is too young to understand what death is, but he knows...
Words: 477 - Pages: 2
...Literary Analysis: “The Scarlet Ibis” Can pride affect others in a bad way? The topic of the short story “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, the narrator helps his brother Doodle(William Armstrong) to accomplish things no one thought was possible because of his bad heart. But in the end he pressured his brother too much and Doodle dies, all because he wanted pride from it. The theme adolescents that pride can both be a good and a bad thing, which you can see through the plot of the story. The narrator reflects on his actions and realizes how selfish he was towards Doodle. In one line it shows that the narrator is planning on teaching doodle more but he saw it as his own victory instead of Doodles victory, “Once I had succeeded in teaching Doodle...
Words: 463 - Pages: 2
..."It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences." Audre Lord said this quote which means that you shouldn't judge a story by its cover, the same with the story "Scarlet Ibis" The story Scarlet Ibis was published in July 1960 by the author James Hurst. The theme of the story is if you are different from Doodle and Scarlet Ibis people will act different towards you and even though you are unique you must pay a heavy price. It can also show that his brother is ashamed of him. Some ideas that are developed through the story are how Doodle has physical limitations, how the Scarlet Ibis died, then Doodle buries it, and how Doodle dies. Doodle is different from the others his name....
Words: 795 - Pages: 4
...The theme of loyalty and betrayal is analyzed across “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, “My Brother’s Keeper” by Jay Bennet, and John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. These stories present a deep dive into brotherhood and human dynamics. Each narrative offers a setting where loyalty strengthens or unravels bonds between one another, leading to a form of betrayal at the end of the narration. Furthermore, the relationship between the two brothers in “The Scarlet Ibis” is characterized by a complexity of loyalty and betrayal. The narrator’s dedication to his little brother Doodle stems from a sense of responsibility, which later reverts into a connection driven by pride throughout the story. At the end of the story, the narrator shares his last thoughts...
Words: 257 - Pages: 2
...short stories “He Hid Behind the Stove,” “The Scarlet Ibis,” and “Harrison Bergeron” all used the literary device of symbolism to augment the story with extra layers of depth, contributing to the overall theme. Firstly, “He Hid Behind the Stove” by Walter Lewis Wilson has the most prominent symbol of the work in...
Words: 670 - Pages: 3
...Imagine “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connen, or “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst without conflict… it doesn't feel right. Conflict is an essential part of almost any story. Conflict can make a story change for the better, for the worst, or even alter the entire purpose of the story. Every single story has a well thought out conflict or problem, including “The Most Dangerous Game” and “The Scarlet Ibis”. This is because without conflict there is no good story. Conflict isn't just something that can change a story, it can also change or develop a character. In the most dangerous game rainsford experiences change as he battles zaroff and nature. Those two conflicts are called man vs man and man vs nature which are both external conflicts....
Words: 1041 - Pages: 5
