The Scarlet Ibis Symbol Analysis

The ibis is first seen after a hurricane, which is uncommon in the area where the narrator and his family live. Doodle is strangely, captivated by it, and the family watches as it dies: “A bird the size of a chicken, with scarlet feathers and long legs, was perched precariously. Its wings hung down loosely, and as we watched, a feather dropped away… Doodle’s hands were clasped at his throat, and I had never seen him stand still so long… Even death did not mar its grace, for it lay on the earth like a broken vase of red flowers, and we stood around it, awed by its exotic beauty” (p. 5). The bird shares many characteristics with Doodle: it’s chicken-like size, its odd beauty, its careful movement. The bird and the Doodle are one. Doodle, an anomaly to the family like the bird, shares a peculiar nature: that is why he is so enthralled with it. He sees himself in the bird. Not only that, but like the bird, his death is crimson and delicate. The narrator runs back to check on Doodle after leaving him in the rain and hearing a lighting bolt cast down a gum tree. The narrator finds his brother like so: “Limply, he fell backwards onto the earth. He had been bleeding from the mouth, and his neck and the front of his shirt were stained a brilliant red...He lay very awkwardly… making his vermillion neck appear unusually long and slim. His little legs, bent sharply at the knees, had never seemed so fragile, so

In the story, “The Scarlet Ibis” written by James Hurst, the main character is a boy by the name William Armstrong, later nicknamed Doodle. Doodle is different to say the least, and faces many hardships throughout his short but not unvalued life. All throughout the story James Hurst subtly compares Doodle to a Scarlet Ibis, a crimson colored bird from the tropics. They share numerous similarities, among those their weakness and fragility, their inability to belong, and the way in which they died.

In “The Scarlet Ibis”, Doodle becomes a surprise to those around him. The author states, “Everybody thought he was going to die- everybody except Aunt Nicey … But he didn’t die, and when was three months old, Mama and Daddy decided they might as well name him.” The family

In the same fashion, the swamp was also used as a symbol to enhance the theme. The swamp was where the boys could go to feel at home in the story. So much happens in the swamp, from Doodle learning how to walk, to the final moments of Doodle’s life, that in the end it represents a safe haven. This symbol enhances the theme because during the time that Doodle was alive, neither one of them really appreciated the beauty of it. However, once the protagonist couldn’t go out there with Doodle anymore, he realized how precious it was to both of them. Arguably the biggest symbol in this short story, the scarlet ibis symbolizes Doodle. After the scarlet ibis dies, the text says, “Sadly, we all looked back at the bird. A scarlet ibis! How many miles it had traveled to die like this, in our yard, beneath the bleeding tree” (Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2003, p. 5). This quote directly relates to Doodle because after coming so far in his physical and mental abilities, it all comes to an end faster than anyone could

James Hurst’s piece of literature, “The Scarlet Ibis,” is a short story that is complete with death, cruelty, brotherhood, and love between a boy and his younger, disabled brother. Hurst placed various examples of symbolism on common items and beings throughout his featured work. Such were meant to explain certain ideas that the item or creature was connected to. Symbolism is a style of writing that uses specific images and indirect suggestion to express ideas, places, qualities, and emotions. Symbols are used to explain and simplify such that are complicated or confusing. In “The Scarlet Ibis,” James Hurst uses the bleeding tree, the scarlet ibis itself, and a mahogany casket that belongs to Doodle, the younger brother, as symbols to offer greater insight into abstract ideas that are difficult to understand on their own.

The book The Scarlet Ibis is about a little boy named Doodle who is physically weak and his older Brother is ashamed of that. Throughout the story Doodles older Brother pushes him to his limits to teach how to walk, run, and swim so that he will be ready for school the following year. But one day Doodles Brother pushes him a little too far, causing him to die. In the book “The Scarlet Ibis” symbolism is used to indicate at the death of Doodle specifically the color red, the changes in weather, and the death of nature around them. For example, when they described things as red or bleeding that implied that something bad was going to happen. You also know something bad is about to happen when the weather

Brother tells his story of the damage that Doodle’s death left on his life. The disabled Doodle is helped by his brother, who is embarrassed of him. When he finds a dead scarlet ibis in their yard, Brother does not know that the bird symbolizes him until Doodle dies later that day from the stress on his heart. Symbolism is shown in this story because the scarlet ibis represents Doodle in almost every way. Foreshadowing is shown within the first paragraphs of the story as it hints at what will happen by the end. In “The Scarlet Ibis”, Hurst uses symbolism and foreshadowing to show that disrespecting what you have results in it disappearing.

The use of symbols helps create a deeper tone and meaning to the overall story. Through out the “Scarlet Ibis”, the author describes Doodle as a very weak “invalid” brother to the narrator. Doodle and the narrator had spent a great deal of time in achieving their goal for Doodle to finally become normal. However, at the ending, Doodle could not be strong enough and died like the scarlet ibis, stained in a “brilliant red” (pg. 13). The author also describes how the scarlet ibis had traveled so far just to “die like this”, showing the comparison between the Doodle and the scarlet ibis. Doodle had worked incredibly hard in order to discard the label of being a

Next in “The Scarlet Ibis” Doodle was born with a red body and also the bird was red. In addition, another similarity they both got caught in a horrific storm that caused their death. This quote “Dead birds is bad luck,” (352) supports the thesis because it means that Doodle had the same problems as the bird, and Doodles condition was certain he could die of it. Another quote is “It's dead,” (352) this supports the thesis because, when the bird died it symbolized that most

A symbol is an object that represents or symbolizes another object. In the short story, the scarlet ibis, by James Hurst, the scarlet ibis is a symbol for Doodle because it represents him in life, in person, and in death. One example of the scarlet ibis symbolizing doodle is the fact that both the Scarlet Ibis and Doodle are out of place. For example, when doodle’s father reads the bird book, he states, “It is a Scarlet Ibis, it lives in the tropics [South America to Florida]. A storm must have brought it here, A Scarlet Ibis!

The scarlet ibis had appeared in the yard of Doodle and the narrator’s home perched in a blood stained tree. The bird was too exotic to have lived in the area, and the only explanation was that a storm had brought it to them, “‘It lives in the tropics- South America to Florida. A storm must have brought it here’” (201). The bird proceeded to fall off the tree in utter exhaustion at its hard work and then lay dead on their lawn. Similarly, Doodle died in a horrible storm, while facing the pressure and weariness brought unto him by his brother, “He failed and we both knew it, so we started back home, racing the storm.

“‘Dead birds [are] bad luck,’ said Aunt Nicey, poking her head from the kitchen door. ‘Specially red dead birds!’” The scarlet ibis is very symbolic; it is a foreshadowing of what is to come. When Aunt Nicey says that red birds are bad luck, she is right. Directly afterwards, Doodle wants to bury it. Once they get to the woods, it starts thundering. Then, as they exit the woods, the narrator has a feeling return to him that he hasn’t felt in a long time, an aggressive feeling towards Doodle. The narrator proceeds to leave Doodle behind, and Doodle ends up getting struck by lightning and falling to the ground dead just like the scarlet ibis fell to the ground. This is both ironic and symbolic for the narrator. It is ironic because he worked so hard to get Doodle to where he was, but then is overpowered by the evil forces in his emotions. It is also symbolic, because the scarlet ibis was a warning, a warning not to leave Doodle and let childish beliefs overpower him. After the death of Doodle the narrator reflects on it, saying, “Sometimes, as I sit in the cool, green-draped parlor, the grindstone begins to turn, and time with all its changes is ground away--and I remember Doodle. Doodle was just about the craziest brother a boy ever had. Of course, he wasn't a crazy crazy like old Miss Leedie, who was in love with President Wilson and wrote him a letter every

Symbolism is often used by authors to get an idea or theme across to the readers. In “The Scarlet Ibis”, Brother has an ill sibling named William Armstrong, or as Brother would call him, Doodle. When Doodle was born everybody thought he was going to die, until he seemed coherent to what was going on around him. Brother then wanted to teach him to walk and run before school started, so he was normal like other kids. He succeeded in doing so, but he was ashamed because he did it for selfish reasons. One day while they were eating lunch, they saw a beautiful ibis outside their window. They went to go see it and discovered that it was dead, Doodle decided to bury it. Brother was pushing Doodle too hard and consequently, his body could not take

There is symbolism shown in the story which means use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities. The Scarlet Ibis

While eating both Doodle and the narrator both noticed a red bird. The whole family goes outside to inspect the bird, “At that moment the bird began to flutter. Its long, graceful neck jerked twice into an S, then straightened out, and the bird was still. Even death did not mar its grace, for it lay on the earth like a broken vase, we stood around it awing its exotic beauty”(10). The author uses “Scarlet Ibis” to represent a foreshadowing of the future.