Similarities Between The Scarlet Ibis And Simon Birch

People with physical disabilities have with setbacks that make it harder for them to live normal lives like most of the people around them. Some of these individuals learn to cope with them, try to keep a positive mindset that helps them become better and stronger in their bodies and mind. In the story “The Scarlet Ibis” and the movie Simon Birch, two boys who suffer from growing setbacks, learn to live with their complications and persevere through their short lives while living them to the fullest and navigating their way to accept themselves for who they are. Simon and Doodle are very similar boys who both have the same disabilities and lifestyle, but the way they act on them and the people around them act as a result of it is somewhat different.

‘Now, come on,’ and I helped him up,’”(Hurst 473). Doodle is different from Simon by his brother figure being is a biological sibling , and his brother wants him to be an orthodox kid. In comparison, Joe, Simon’s brother figure, doesn’t care that isn't like the other kids. Another difference is they aren’t actually brothers.The two are the same by always having somebody by their side, and their figure is their only friend. They both have a person that will stand up for them, and makes them feel wanted. Overall, Doodle and Simon’s brother figure both make their stories similar and different.

Simon Birch and Doodle were both born with their disabilities. After birth, the doctors thought Simon would die due to his small heart and body (Johnson). Similarly, Doodle was thought to die after seeing his small, shriveled newborn body; “(He had) a tiny body...Everybody thought he was going to die” (Hurst 428). Furthermore, both characters developed through childhood with limitations due to his disability. Simon was slow in games with his friends and struggled in baseball, but through his limits he persisted and had a nice childhood (Johnson). Doodle also worked through his disability. As a baby he strained to develop, which some believed would kill him, but he persevered to learn to crawl (Hurst). His brother had pushed Doodle to develop walking skills and other playful activities; “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 432). After being taught to walk, Brother set out to teach his younger to run, fight, climb trees, and swim (Hurst). Unlike Simon, Doodle was burdened for his inabilities and was taught skills to try to keep him from being ostracized when in school.

¨At six years old, when his brother is born, the narrator tells the reader that from the first, Doodle was "a disappointment." When he learns that Doodle is possibly mentally and physically challenged, the narrator begins his plan to kill his brother; however, his plans are soon discarded after Doodle smiles at him¨. (James Hurst) The main conflict of "The Scarlet Ibis" by James Hurst is Brother's inability to deal with Doodle's disabilities.

James Hurst uses events in the plot to convey the message that everyone is special in their own way and should be cherished before they are gone. This is seen when Doodle’s family first sees that Doodle can walk. “There wasn’t a sound as Doodle walked slowly… Then Mama began to cry and ran over to him, hugging him and kissing him” (pg.

"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" (597). Brother didn't teach Doodle to help him, he did it because he was embarrassed. When Doodle finally showed his family that he could walk, Brother cried when everyone praised him for showing him how to walk. Brother felt guilty for knowing that he did it because he had so much pride and was so embarressed, He did it for

Everyone is born different. Everyone has different expectations that were set for them. It is up to them to either exceed or fail that expectation. Simon Birch and “The Scarlet Ibis” both tell the story of two young boys who were born with disabilities and told they were not to make it past a couple of days. To everyone's dismay, both of the boys survived longer than anybody expected. Although Simon and Doodle are characters in two different stories, they have many similarities including both having a brother figure and both defying the odds by surviving; however, a difference between them is that Simon always kept his faith in God and himself while Doodle was skeptical and sometimes doubted his abilities.

Again, it is a continued attempt to try and coerce Doodle into thinking that he must learn to walk now before it is too late. Later on in the story, Doodle successfully learns to

Brother knew that Doodle had disabilities, but instead of accepting it he tried to push Doodle into learning the normal ways of life. When Doodle was a baby he tried to do things on his own for example, he would push himself up until he turned purple, which was not healthy. Brother also tried to teach Doodle how to swim, walk, and talk. Pushing him could have caused emotional damage and false hope. When Doodle was learning how to walk, he would get up and then eventually he would fall down.

One of the main reasons Doodle’s brother begins to teach Doodle how to walk is because he doesn't want a brother that isn’t normal. When the narrator finally teaches Doodle how to walk they decides to show their parents, the development Doodle has made. Their parents are absolutely overjoyed that their son can walk, but Doodle’s brother is crying. He is crying because he knows that the only reason Doodle can walk is because of his self centered needs. “They did not know that I did it for myself… Doodle walked only because I was ashamed of having a crippled brother.” (Hurt pg#) Doodle’s body could barely take the stress that came with learning to walk, yet the narrator still pushes Doodle to do more. He wants doodle to be just like the boys at school, the boys that run around, and play on the playground. Doodle’s body can not handle the amount of pressure all of these activities and workouts the narrator is putting Doodle’s body through. The narrator was not content with Doodle just learning to walk, his selfish ways wanted Doodle to be like a regular kid, but Doodle’s body can’t take that amount of pressure and in result he died.

Another reason is the narrator pushed Doodle too hard so Doodle can fit what he wanted as a brother. He wanted to get Doodle to walk so he can fit in with the other

He’s tons more different in the interest of wanting to make Brother proud of him, no matter how hard he had to try. Even if he came close to dying. Doodle was always curious and he tried to live life to the fullest as much as he could. Which wasn’t a lot due to his heart condition. He additionally did stuff his brother always told him to do. There’s one thing that stood out to me in this story. Doodle never wanted Brother to leave his side. Sadly when Doodle dies, Brother left him alone in the storm. Brother left him in the storm after working Doodle too hard in the rowboat and then tried making him run home. After all that Doodle’s heart had worked too much and he passed away in the middle of the storm. When Brother finally realizes what he has done he goes back, but when goes back, Doodle was laying there dead. Brother cried while holding him in his arms, hoping he would come back to life. Sorrowfully Doodle didn’t and that was the end of the

Doodle from “The Scarlet Ibis” is a young handicapped boy who is born with inferior

Doodle’s family expects less of him because of his disability in the story “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst. For example, Doodle’s family does not think that he will live more than a day or so, so they give him a name that is specially for engraving on a tombstone. Showing that his family supposes he will die very soon if not in a few days. Not only that, they also do not believe he is going to go into the outside world and is going to stay at their home until he dies. Furthermore, his family does not require him to walk. They are happy with him doing whatever he wants because they think it is impossible for him to walk. In addition, showing that they are significantly lowering the bar in which they think Doodle can accomplish. Although they

Doodle was born with complications that made him handicapped. “He was born when I was six and was, a disappointment. He seemed all head, with a tiny body which was red and shriveled like an old man.” pg.485/2 This is important because as soon as he was born he didn’t look like a normal baby and he had complications to his life as soon