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Thesis about the scarlet ibis by james hurst
Critique of the story the scarlet ibis
Literary devices in the scarlet ibis
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Be very careful what you wish for because things are never as they seem, especially in the realistic fiction short story “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst. In the story the narrator is longing for a brother; but he is not expecting to get one quite like Doodle; and from the start he plans to help and hurt him. Brother is trying to help Doodle by teaching him to do things normal children can do, but hurts him because his pride and embarrassment and Doodle’s incapability get in the way. In this dramatic realistic fiction “Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, I realize Brother tries to help Doodle only to save himself from humiliation. As the story is progressing however, I notice the narrator is being nothing but evil to his brother by doing things such as: trying to hurt him in a go-cart and mocking and changing his name. It also registers to me that the red, dead peacock is a mysterious parallel and foreshadows to upcoming events in the short read.
In this twisting tale of unrealistic reality, we notice the narrator does not want to be with, near, or around his brother but his mother forces him to be. Although Doodle is finally capable of crawling, he still cannot walk, so “Daddy [is building] him a go-cart and I [have] to pull him around.” (Hurst 110) Brother states. When I hear the word “go-cart”, I think fun and excitement; but Brother sees it as a punishment and hates the idea. I see brother pulling around Doodle as a way for the two to bond as siblings; however the narrator wants nothing to do with Doodle except to hurt him. No matter where Brother is going, “Mother [calls] from wherever she [is] ‘Take Doodle with you.’ ’’ This gives Brother, in his mind, another reason to bring more havoc to Doodle. Continuously Brother takes...
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...his forehead and lifted his head… He had been bleeding from the mouth.” (Hurst 117).
Who is to blame for this? Is it Doodle, Brother, the parents? In this unpredictable short story I notice many things about the characters and myself. Life is something to be cherished not taken for granted and with Doodle’s terrible condition, that is exactly what those around him did: take him for granted. When and how will the parents discover the death? How will they feel? Who will they blame? Should they blame themselves for their child’s death? Will they blame Brother? Could this not have happened if Brother didn’t push so hard? Did Doodle have a choice or a life of his own? Did he enjoy the time he had? Could have been longer? These are all questions that come to mind when while reading this incredible short story, realistic fiction “Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst.
He also exhibits kindness and love toward Doodle during parts of the story. For instance when Doodle’s brother tires of carrying Doodle in a go-cart, he decides to teach Doodle how to walk. Although Doodle fails numerous times, his brother keeps trying and and encourages him after a particularly disheartening fail when he says “Yes you can Doodle. All you gotta do is try. Now come on,” (Hurst 558). In this quote Doodle struggles to walk by himself. However, his determined brother stays with him the entire time and encourages Doodle to make sure he never gives up and can learn how to walk by himself. The evidence shows that Doodle’s brother does care for Doodle and that he is not always mean and cruel. The quote exemplifies Doodle’s brother’s ambivalent attitude toward his brother. The author is trying to show that Doodle’s brother grows fonder of Doodle with each passing day. Doodle’s brother’s growing love for Doodle becomes more evident as the story progresses. After Doodle learns to walk well, he and his brother, “roamed off together, resting often, we never turned back until our destination had been reached” (Hurst 559). This quote shows that Doodle’s brother grows fonder of Doodle and the two become inseparable. They go everywhere together and Doodle’s brother takes care of Doodle when they go on their journey. Hence, Doodle’s brother becomes a kind, loving brother who takes care of Doodle and tries to make Doodle have a happy life.
The narrator’s pride had a negative effect on Doodle. The narrator said, ”Shut up, I’m not going to hurt you,”(Hurst 3). Here the narrator is telling his little brother to shut up, but that is cruel and an ineffective way to deliver the message. Next, “‘I won’t touch it,’ Doodle said, ‘Then I will leave you here” the older brother replied (Hurst 2). The situation is that when Doodle was little, the family did not think Doodle would survive, so Doodle’s family made the decision to
In the short story, “The Scarlet Ibis”, we know that the theme is, one day everything will end, so instead of wanting and wishing for more, appreciate what you have now. This is true because the quote, “I wanted more than anything else someone to race to Horsehead Landing, someone to box with,” displaying that Brother wanted a younger sibling, but soon realized that his sibling William Armstrong (Doodle) would not be able to play like other children. However, he had hope. “It was bad enough having an invalid brother, but having one who possibly was not all there was unbearable, so I began to make plans to kill him by smothering him with a pillow. However, one afternoon as I watched him, my head poked between iron posts of the bed, he looked straight at me and grinned, I skipped through the rooms, echoing through the halls, shouting, ‘Mama, he smiled. He’s all there! He’s all there!’ and he was,” reveals that the narrator wished that Doodle wouldn’t be crazy, and that he hoped, deep down, Doodle would get better and be able to play with him. Once Doodle
Have you ever thought about murdering one of your siblings, or close family members? Brother took it all the way in “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst. Doodle, Brother’s younger sibling, was expected to die since birth; he was a premature child. The family didn’t name him for three months because they were afraid that he was going to die any second. Doodle learned how to talk way before he could walk, forcing the narrator to pull him around in a gocart everywhere he went. Brother became embarrassed of Doodle and taught him to walk. Doodle dies at age six, and Brother is responsible for his death. The narrator is responsible, because he knew about Doodle’s undeveloped organs, and over-worked him. Brother’s only motivation to teach Doodle to run, swim, climb and walk was the fact that he was embarrassed to have a crippled sibling. Finally, he was aware that Doodle was afraid of being alone and left him to die.
Brother was embarrassed of his brother and also a little bit ashamed. He doesn’t want a sibling who can’t do all the things that his friends brothers can do, he just wants Doodle to fit in. “I was so embarrassed of having a brother that age that couldn’t walk”(2), because of this he sets out to teach Doodle how to do these things. Brother pushed Doodle, he wanted Doodle ot be able to be like the other kids when school started. Even though Brother was just trying to help Doodle, he was doing it for himself, not for Doodle. “Although he kept up, his face turned red and his yes became glazed”(Hurst 3), Brother oftentimes pushed Doodle too hard, resulting in him feeling exhausted. While sometimes pushing DOodle to get better at things was good, that was not always the case. “I ran as fast as I could, leaving him far behind with a wall of rain dividing us”(5), Brother did some things out of embarrassment, shame, and sometimes love, but this time was definitely shame.”I went back and found him huddled beneath a red nightshade bush”(5), this time Brother had pushed him too hard, resulting in Doodle’s death. While most of the time Brother helped and taught Doodle out of embarrassment and shame, by the end it was just all
Humans are never perfect, and their emotions often conflict with their logic. In “The Scarlet Ibis”, the narrator receives a physically disabled brother, Doodle, thus trains Doodle physically so that he could live a normal life. Throughout the story, the narrator’s actions and thoughts reveals his true personalities to the audience as he slowly narrates the story of himself and his scarlet ibis, Doodle, whose existence he dreaded. In the story written by James Hurst, pride, love, and cruelty, these conflicting character traits all exists in Doodle’s brother. And the most severe of all, pride.
Do you have many things in common with someone? Maybe you even know twins. Well, Doodle and the ibis in James Hurst’s The Scarlet Ibis have many similarities. We learn early in the story that Doodle was expected to die at a young age. When he was born he had many complications. His brother was determined to help him and eventually he had surprised his family and the people who had doubted him. The ibis was very alike Doodle in the way that they had both done things that amazed people, especially Doodle’s family. The ibis was looked as small and frail. Come to find later in the story, the ibis was very strong at heart just as Doodle was.
In James Hurst’s short story, “the Scarlet Ibis”, the narrator is guilty of his brother, Doodle’s death. There are many pieces of evidence stacked against him. He never treated his brother right and obviously had something against him from the very start. Doodle had a lot of health problems. His weak heart made it difficult for him to do simple things like walking and standing up. His brother was absolutely mortified at the idea of the embarrassment he would endure if he was known as the kid with a brother who couldn’t walk.
Shakespeare’s Macbeth is similar to the 1971 film dramatization of Macbeth directed by Roman Polanski since the film reinvents Macbeth’s hallucinations, horses breaking free from their stalls, and the symbol of sleep. The two versions differ in terms of the characterizations and of the witches and Lady Macbeth, the amount of violence seen by the audience, and the ending of the play. In addition, most of the film takes place in daylight while most of Shakespeare’s Macbeth takes place at night. Some differences between the two sources are supported by the use of technology and special effects which Shakespeare did not have at his disposal. Although gruesome violence and vulgar nudity in the 1971 movie version is unnecessary, the film is entertaining and breathes in new life into Shakespeare’s Macbeth.
Doodle's brother would only do this to have control on Doodle and Doodle's actions. This control, which Doodle's brother wanted, gave him enjoyment to boss around his brother, enjoyment to boss a crippled kid. And that Doodle walked only because his brother was ashamed of having a crippled brother. It was bad enough having an invalid b....
Doodle’s health is not good and you can see that in this piece of text. (Topic Sentence) The author writes, “He didn’t answer so I placed my hand on his forehead and lifted his head. Limply, he fell backwards onto the Earth. He had been bleeding from his mouth, and his neck and the front of his shirt was stained brilliant red.”(172)(Textual support- 5). Doodle is harmed and it’s because his brother’s pride got in the way of his health and well being. (Commentary)
In conclusion, Brother shows his self-interest in how he treats his younger brother. He treats his younger brother, Doodle, as something to ‘fix’ and he cannot accept his brother as he is. When Doodle finally learns to walk, Brother’s selfish need for a more ‘ideal’ little brother is not satisfied for long. Soon he demands a little brother who can run, jump, climb, swim, swing on vines, and row a boat. When he gives Doodle lessons for these activities, he does not do so for concern about Doodle wanting to be able to do them, but because he wants Doodle to be able to be a ‘normal’ brother.
Through vivid yet subtle symbols, the author weaves a complex web with which to showcase the narrator's oppressive upbringing. Two literary
In “The Scarlet Ibis,” written by James Hurst, Doodle, a boy born with health problems, experiences cruel actions from his older brother who wishes Doodle would have been born as normal as possible with no health conditions. As Doodle grows his older brother tries to teach him to be as normal as Doodle portrays to be capable to be, such as teaching him to walk, although this affects Doodle’s health severely, which eventually leads to his early death. The narrator in “The Scarlet Ibis” causes Doodle’s death by leaving Doodle in the rain, teaching him things that affects his health, and creating a sense of curiosity.
...verything” (Hurst 1). The brother only cared about himself and having fun, and did not think about the affect his actions had on Doodle. The brother decides to “teach him [Doodle] to run, to swim, to climb trees, and to fight” (Hurst 3). Readers can begin to infer that the brother’s careless actions will later lead to serious injury or the death of Doodle.