The Scarlet Ibis Discussion Questions
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
10)
11)
12)
Why does Brother teach Doodle to walk/prepare him for school? What
are his motivations? Are his motivations more selfish or genuine?
The story starts at the end of the summer. Why does the author choose
to start the story at the END of summer. What could be the significance
of that?
What could the passage of time in the story symbolize?
What gives a person value? If Doodle hadn’t learned to walk or talk,
would we have considered his life valuable? Is his life worth living if he
was simply catatonic on the bed for all of his life? When Brother is
talking about “smothering him with a pillow” is he doing this to put
Doodle out of his misery or are his motivations selfish?
Mamma sobs when she tells Brother that Doodle might not be “all
there”. Why is it that she’s sobbing? Is she mourning the loss of life for
her son or mourning what that means for her?
To what extent do you hold Brother responsible for Doodle’s death?
To what extent do we hold the parent’s responsible for Doodle’s death?
By the end of the story, who do we pity more, Brother or Doodle? Why?
Explain your answer.
Why does the author choose not to reveal Brother’s name? What insight
does this action give us into the thoughts/feelings of the narrator
about the events he is mentioning?
How does the author develop the theme of childhood and loss of
innocence over the course of the story?
Is it fair that Brother bears all of the responsibility for caring for
Doodle? What does this tell us about the parents? Do we blame him for
resenting Doodle?
Why does Brother make Doodle touch the casket? What exactly is he
trying to do here?
© TheBigQuestionsBookshop
The Scarlet Ibis Discussion Questions
13)
14)
15)
16)
The line that Brother mentions “I did not know then that pride is a
wonderful, terrible thing, a seed that bears two vines, life and death” is
hugely insightful for a child of Brother’s age. We know that he is telling
this story from the present looking back. What insight does this give us
into Brother’s development as a character after the events of the story?
Why did Brother make the decision to run and leave Doodle behind at
the end of the story? What were his motivations for doing that? Was
this decision conscious or unconscious?
Imagine the conversation between Brother and his parents after the
story ends? What did that look like? What might the reactions of the
parents be to this news?
Do you think Brother feels any remorse for what he’s done? Why or why
not?
© TheBigQuestionsBookshop
Thank you!
Thank you so much for purchasing this
product! I hope that this resource will be a
valuable time saver for you and get your students
engaged in high level discussions!
Terms of Use:
1) This product is for private classroom
use only and may not be posted, resold,
or shared.
2) Please do not share this product with
other teachers without purchasing
additional licenses.
3) Feel free to print this product for use in
your classroom.
1)
2)
3)
1)
2)
3)
4)
YOU CAN:
Print this product for classroom and personal use.
Post this product on private LMS sites for individual classroom use.
Share about this product as long as credit is given to The Big Questions Bookshop.
YOU CANNOT:
Share this product for free with other individuals without purchasing additional licenses.
Take credit for any aspect of this product as your own.
Remove copyright marks.
Post this product on any website that is free or paid. You may not resell this product.
BREAKING THESE TERMS OF USE IS A VIOLATION OF COPYRIGHT LAW.
© TheBigQuestionsBookshop