Name ____________________________ Period _____ Date _____
“The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst (p. 460)
Part One: Connect to the story. Free write for a few minutes by answering the following two questions.
 What would it feel like to be embarrassed by or ashamed of someone you care about? How did it
feel? How do you think it felt for the other person?

Sometimes we are harder on loved ones than on anyone else. Why do you think this is?
Review- At this point we have discussed all of the following terms. Be sure you know these terms before
the final short story test next week.
Flashback-an account of a conversation or episode that happened before the beginning of the story
Symbol-a person, place, object or activity that stands for something beyond itself
Simile-a comparison of two things using “like” or “as”
Metaphor-a figure of speech that makes a comparison between two things that are basically unlike but
have something in common
Foreshadowing-a writer’s use of hints or clues to suggest events that will occur later in the story
Allusion-an indirect or direct reference to a famous, person, place, event, or literary work
Point of View-the method of narration (1st, 3rd, 3rd omniscient, 3rd limited)
Theme-the universal message the author suggests about human nature
Tone-the speaker’s/writer’s attitude towards the subject and audience
Mood-
Part 2: Assess (Complete sentences unless otherwise stated)
1. After listening to the first paragraph of the story with your eyes closed, what mood do you think the
author is trying to create?
The mood the author creates is __________________________________________________.
The words that made me think this was the mood were _________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
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Name ____________________________ Period _____ Date _____
2. At the end of the second paragraph on page 462, the narrator says “—and I remember Doodle.” What
literary technique is the author using here that brings us back in time? ___________________________
3. There are two allusions that Aunt Nicey uses in reference to Doodle. What are they?
a.
b.
 By using these two biblical allusions, what is Aunt Nicey saying about the things to which they
refer?
4. On page 462 the narrator says “They named him William Armstrong, which was like tying a big tail on
a small kite.” What figure of speech is being used here? _______________________
 What does this mean?
5. On page 466 the narrator says, “There is within me (and with sadness I have watched it in others) a
knot of cruelty borne by the stream of love, much as our blood sometimes bears the seed of our
destruction…”
What figure of speech are the bold words? ___________________
What does the narrator mean by this knot of cruelty? Answer these questions to help unravel it…
a. What can stop or block the flow of blood in the bloodstream? _______________________
b. What happens to a person whose blood stops flowing? _____________________________
c. …so why might the narrator’s knot of cruelty be important to the story?
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Name ____________________________ Period _____ Date _____
6. Draw a visual to help me see the following metaphor: “I did not know then that pride is a wonderful,
terrible thing, a seed that bears two vines, life and death.” (page 467)
 Now… what does this metaphor mean?
7. a. What happens to Doodle at the end of the story?
b. Do you think what happens to Doodle is the narrator’s fault? Explain.
8. Were there any clues as to what was going to happen to Doodle by the end of the story? What details
foreshadowed the end?
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Name ____________________________ Period _____ Date _____
9. Symbol
a. Why is the presence of the scarlet ibis at the narrator’s home in North Carolina unsettling?
b. Do you believe the ibis is a symbol for Doodle? Explain using details.
c. If the ibis is a symbol for Doodle, what does the bird’s presence in North Carolina and ultimate
death say about Doodle’s existence?
10. Voice/Point of View
From whose point of view is this story told?
a. The story is told from 1st, 3rd limited, 3rd omniscient (circle one) point of view.
b. Who specifically is telling the story?
c. What do you think the author achieved by telling the story from this point of view?
11. Theme
Now let’s put it all together… What is the theme of “The Scarlet Ibis”? Look at all the details of the story
and decide what comment about life or human nature is demonstrated in this story.
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