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Abby Haywood
Mrs. Mount
English 1 Honors
October 17, 2011
Literary Devices in “Scarlet Ibis”
The “Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst is about a young boy who almost died when he
was born because he was underdeveloped. The boy went through a lot of hard ships in his life
like doubts, fear, and unhopefulness. The little boys name is William Armstrong but people call
him Doodle, he loves his older brother and always wants to be with him. The older brother
teaches Doodle how to walk and encourages Doodle to keep trying and he reminds Doodle he
can succeed. Towards the end of the story he resembles a scarlet ibis bird, weak, alone, away
from his own type, and afraid. Both the young boy and the scarlet ibis had exotic beauty, and
uniquiness. The brother leaves little Doodle and when the brother comes back to find him,
Doodle is dead. The literary devices that the short story shows are symbolism and
personification. Symbolism is important because the scarlet ibis symbolizes Doodle.
Personification is important because whenever they talk about the Old Woman Swamp they give
it human qualities.
Symbolism is important because in the story the scarlet ibis resembled Doodle. The
scarlet ibis symbolizes both the bird and the child because the bird was red as well as Doodle
was covered in red. The bird was from and different place and didn’t belong there, like Doodle is
different from most people in the world. Doodle was weak, and not strong like the bird was
during its encounter with the family. The way the bird laid when it was dead resembled the way
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the little boy looked when he was dead. Doodle was very delicate and looked fragile like the
scarlet ibis was when it was dying. Not only did the short story have symbolism but it also had
personification involved in the story.
Symbolism affected the plot and the characters in the short story the “Scarlet Ibis”
because it changed the way you think about Doodle. I would have never guessed that the scarlet
ibis would have anything to do with the way that Doodle would have died. Doodle was different
from everybody else and he looked at life differently, he had to spend extra time and do things
differently to live. The scarlet ibis was away from its own kind as well as Doodle. If the scarlet
ibis never showed up at their house the family never would have known that Doodle cared so
much about it. It was like the bird was a sign that something was about to happen like Aunt
Nicey pointed out in the book. In the story Doodle loved nature and Old Women Swamp and all
the things that were in it, and the bird is a symbol of nature and Doodle. Nature is something that
he and his brother appreciated and something that they shared together. The two brothers had a
plan to teach Doodle to walk and they didn’t tell anyone until he could really do and show off
what he could do. The brother pushed Doodle to do more and more and during the storm Doodle
got tired and gave up after his brother left him alone in the rain.
Another literary element that is showed in the story is personification. Personification is
used in the story many times, the author uses it to give examples to describe and compare things
in the story. In the text James Hurst says that hope no longer hid away, that means that any hope
of Doodle succeeding and becoming stronger was there and everyone including him believed he
could become stronger and prouder of himself. When Doodle and his brother went to Old
Women Swamp every day the author uses personification to describe all the flowers and
quietness of the swamp. He says that when Doodle saw the swamp he was amazed by its beauty,
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and they would drop their “jewels” in the stream and watch them float away. The “jewels”
meaning flowers, the author uses the word jewels because they are very valuable to people, and
the flowers are valuable to Doodle and his brother.
Personification affected the plot of the story and the characters in the story. The plot is
affected because the two brothers always go to Old Women Swamp and spend quality time with
each other and have memories in the swamp. The author uses personification to describe how
beautiful the swamp is and how much it means to them. Personification affected the plot
because it described how important things mean to Doodle and his brother. For instance, when
the author described the flowers as “jewels” or when he talked about the “bleeding tree” it
allowed the reader to experience the meaning and set a mood of the story. Personification
affected the characters because he compares them to different things depending on what they do.
When the author says that Doodle was “paralyzed” it means that he was terrified and couldn’t
move because he was so scared. The author said the older brother was like a “big tail, on a small
kite” its saying that he is mean. Anyway James Hurst uses personification or symbolism it’s
affecting the plot and characters in some way.
The story “Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst is a very touching story. The story makes you
realize that even if someone is different from other people they still have feelings and are
important. The short story uses different literary elements throughout the story. In the text the
author James Hurst uses symbolism and personification most of all. The scarlet ibis symbolizes
Doodle because it dies in the end, and because they are both unique in their own way. The author
uses personification the text to describe and compare the things in Old Women Swamp. I think
that using different literary elements throughout a story allows the reader to understand what
they are reading better.