Scarlet Ibis James Hurst Character Analysis

The narrator’s brother, affectionately nicknamed Doodle, wasn’t supposed to live for much more than a day after he was born. “Everybody thought he was going to die- everybody except Aunt Nicey,” (Hurst 1) Doodle was born with a specific disability that perhaps was untreatable then. Yet, they called him a disappointment, and no one believed that he had a single choice. “He was born when I was six, and was, from the outset, a disappointment.” (Hurst 1)No one else tried to find a way to support him even after he lived beyond Aunt Nicey’s expectations. Neither of his parents cared to help or even attempt to love him, presumably they just avoided him all the time. Doctor’s assumed that Doodle wasn’t going to make it, because his heart was too small and his body too big to be supported by it. “The doctor said that with his weak heart this strain would probably kill him, but it didn’t.” (Hurst 2) The narrator tried to treat his brother like a normal kid and make him learn things, to make him closer to normal than

In “The Scarlet Ibis,” the author, James Hurst, uses indirect characterization, mainly through the narrator’s internal thoughts and feelings, to convey the theme that disabilities are not flaws in an individual, and that they are mere differences that make each individual unique. Early in the story, the author explains that Doodle, the narrator’s brother, has a deadly heart condition which prevents him from participating in activities such as running, jumping, swimming, and even walking. When Doodle is not expected to live when he is born, the narrator says that he does not want an “invalid” brother, but instead, wants a brother who can run around, jump, and play with him. Even the rest of the family does not believe that he is going to survive, and they do not even name him until he lives for three months. Later in the story, the narrator thinks, “...but he learned to crawl

‘Brother’ has a difficult time having a crippled brother forming a Man VS Self conflict. ‘Brother’ changes throughout the story but in the end is consumed by pride. The theme Hurst tries to show throughout the ‘Scarlet Ibis’ s that one can have pride, but it can lead to helpful outcomes, but don’t become consumed by it or you will not get what you dreamed of. When ‘Brother’ and Doodle revealed that Doodle could walk at his 6th birthday “ “What are you crying for?” asked Daddy, but I could not answer. They did not know that I did it for myself, that pride, whose slave I was [...] Doodle only walked because I was ashamed of having a crippled brother” (Hurst 258). When ‘Brother’ starts crying he is consumed by guilt from forcing Doodle to learn how to walk. He knew it was pride controlling him, but could not help free himself from it. His pride though let him teach Doodle to walk and gain compassion for Doodle, his crippled brother. The incident changes ‘Brother’ in a way where he learned, but did not realize, he should never have pushed Doodle as far as he did. ‘Brother’s’ pride got the better of him and he wanted to teach Doodle how to row a boat and run. ‘Brother’ tried day after day, but Doodle just did not have the endurance. Yet ‘Brother’ did not stop, he kept pushing Doodle to his limits “The faster I walked, the faster he would, so i began to run [...] in the moment

The narrator, Brother, tells the story of Doodle, his brother, and his childhood with all his disabilities; starting off by telling about Doodle when he was a baby and toddler, about how he could not do much for himself for a long time, but eventually learns to crawl. He soon moves onto when Doodle got a little older and Brother would have to take him everywhere he went and how the two would take on the mission of teaching Doodle to walk; they spent almost everyday out in the woods making Doodle stronger and stronger. On Doodle’s sixth birthday, they showed the family what he could do;

“Nothing hurts more than trying your absolute best and still not being good enough.” -r.t Everyone in our society wants to be accepted into this world so they try and try until they think they are good enough but sometimes it still isn’t enough, like with Doodle in “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst. Doodle was born into the world expecting to be a normal child, but turning out to have disabilities. His whole family never really accepted him because of his distinction. His brother would try to teach Doodle everything he would need to be to become a normal person, but only for himself, which hurt Brother in the long run when selfishness and rejection become him. Some people may say that James Hurst views difference as a way to become closer to the one that is diverse. This makes sense because Brother would act as if he accepted his brother as much as he would try to change him. However, in the story Brother was very selfish because he was embarrassed about having a brother with disabilities so he never accepted him, he merely approved of the brother that Brother made him.

In “The Scarlet Ibis”, Hurst demonstrates through indirect characterization the narrator’s selfishness, that being prideful can cause harm for the ones close. Doodle’s brother always wanted someone to play with, but when he found out about his “invalid” disabled brother he was disgusted, disrespectful, and selfish. He had thought of helping his brother as a burden, and his pride was too high too accept the fact. So Doodle’s brother set out to teach Doodle how to walk, only because “[he] did it for [himself]: that pride, whose slave [he] was, spoke to [him] louder than all [the family], and that Doodle walked only because [he] was ashamed of having a crippled brother.”(10) In this quote we see Doodle’s brother show his selfish side when he describes how he helped his brother “for [himself].” What he meant was that he only wanted to help because of his pride.

The Scarlet Ibis Theme Essay Selfishness is a quality that affects both the person who possesses it and the people around them. When this selfishness is caused by pride, the results can be fatal. James Hurst’s short story “The Scarlet Ibis” narrates the story of Doodle, a young child born with a disability that prevents him from walking.

We are often haunted by our choices. Regret is a feeling that returns to haunt our memories. In James Hurst’s short story “The Scarlet Ibis,” Hurst shows how a disability negatively affects a family. A young boy named Brother wants a sibling who can enjoy the things that he does, such as running, jumping, or even climbing. When Doodle is born, Brother’s expectations are not met. Although Brother and his family expect that Doodle would eventually die from his disability, Brother doesn’t take this loss well. James Hurst writes about the pain and regret that the narrator feels regarding Doodle’s sudden death. In “The Scarlet Ibis,” James Hurst uses the symbolism of birds to offer insight into the difference and uniqueness of Doodle.

“The Scarlet Ibis” is a story written by James Hurst. In the story, the narrator is prideful and this causes him to become cruel and uncaring toward his brother Doodle. Doodle loves his brother and does everything he is told which leads to a tragic accident. This teaches the narrator that his brother was very important to him. Throughout the story, the narrator is embarrassed and ashamed of Doodle, however, he also shows a side that reveals his love for Doodle even with his disability.

The narrator's pride. Well, first we see that the narrator is embarrassed by having Doodle as his brother. We can see that when he says “When Doodle was five years old, I was embarrassed at having a brother of that age who couldn’t walk, so I set out to teach him” (Hurst 353). Other places he shows his pride is in (Hurst 356) “Once I had succeeded in teaching Doodle to walk, I began to believe in my own infallibility and I prepared a terrific development program for him, unknown to Mama and Daddy, of course.” His pride has gotten too much in his head and started going harder on Doodle.

To elaborate, the author creates a great description on how character helps with the overall theme. The story is set in Eastern North Carolina the early 1900s, and it explains on how the character Doodle’s brother feels about his sibling. It was said in the story that Doodle’s brother disliked having his brother with him because he was ashamed of having someone that could not walk or swim with him. In addition, it could be seen that even from the beginning of the main characters story that Doodle’s brother disapproved of his younger brother, "It was bad enough having an invalid brother, but having one who possibly was not all there

James Hurst’s short story The Scarlet Ibis, is about two brothers, Doodle and the narrator (which he is referred to as Brother). When Doodle was born, he was different than other babies. He had a disability which people came to mind that he wasn’t going to survive for long, so they didn’t expect much from him. So since Brother didn’t want a little brother who had a disability he pushes him to be someone he can never be. In the story, James Hurst explains his use of symbolism on how the scarlet ibis relates to Doodle.

The dysfunctionality in Doodle and his brother’s relationship began when Doodle was born with a disability. Despite Doodle being a miracle baby, his brother feels embarrassed of his brother’s disability. Doodle’s Brother always tries to cause Doodle pain and traumatized him by making him touch his coffin and other such terrible things. He made Doodle go above and beyond his limits by forcing Doodle to “run, to swim, to climb trees, and to fight.” inspite of Doodle’s disability (4 Hurst). He only does this for his own selfishness and wish to not have a disabled brother. Doodle was considered to be a burden, even after he learned to walk for the happiness of his elder brother. Doodle always trusted and believed his brother. On the other hand, Doodle’s Brother always felt Doodle was nothing more than a burden. When he tries to run away from his responsibilities, he ends up killing Doodle. Doodle’s loyalty and faith in his brother was not reciprocal by his brother . Doodle trusted his brother blindly but his brother’s hateful emotions towards him cause their relationship to be destroyed. The narrator showed false loyalty and pride for Doodle and allowed his selfishness to destroy their

A significant aspect of life is being confronted with obstacles that restrict the ability to achieve success. As displayed in James Hurst’s short story, The Scarlet Ibis and as well as in the movie The Man in the Iron Mask, the main characters Louis and Doodle face the reality of being confined by their physical and mental inabilities, which hinder their progress. Each character is also greatly influenced by their surroundings, leading to poorly made decisions. Additionally, both characters face unrealistic standards set by the individuals around them and are pushed past their capabilities, resulting in failure. The lack of ability possessed by Louis and Doodle prevent them from overcoming barriers due to their physical and mental limitations,

Brother is showing Doodle’s unwillingness along with the cruel attempts to point out his flaws. When Brother made doodle touch the coffin, he knew the reaction he would get out of him. “Even when were outside in the sunlight, he clung to me, crying, ‘Don’t leave me. Don’t leave me” ( ). Doodle is very afraid of the coffin and brother knows that. By making him touch the coffin, he is clearly implying to Doodle that he will never be normal like the other kids. On the other hand, no matter how cruel Brother’s actions may be, he still shows interest toward teaching Doodle many tricks. But these actions are clearly for his self gratification. “What are you crying for? asked Daddy, but I couldn’t answer. 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.” Although brother teaches Doodle how to walk, it is entirely for his own sense. Ashamed by Doodle’s crippledness, Brother attempts to fix Doodle’s many imperfections, without acknowledging his view and