The Scarlet Ibis

Here is a link to the text online.

Character: Answer the following questions related to how James Hurst creates his characters in the short story. Again, you should focus on how to use quotes from the text economically. When you use a quotation from the story, you don't have to use the whole quote. Just a phrase or even a single word can serve your purpose. Also, if you do use a longer quote, you should introduce it with a signal phrase, such as:

The narrator says, "Doodle was a burden in many ways."

or

The narrator says that his brother was "a burden in many ways."

1. How does the real Doodle differ from the Doodle the brother wanted him to be? How might this affect their relationship?

2. Record Doodle’s reaction to seeing Old Woman Swamp for the first time. What does his reaction say about the kind of person he is?

3. Why does the narrator cry when everyone congratulates him for teaching Doodle how to walk? How does this relate to the following quote from the story: "I did not know then that pride is a wonderful, terrible thing, a seed that bears two vines, life and death."

4. The narrator says that Doodle is really good at telling lies. What are these lies and what do they tell us about Doodle and how he perceives his limitations?

5. Explain how Hurst uses the scarlet ibis as a symbol in the story.