Scarlet Ibis Essay
Can selfish pride benefit anyone beside yourself? This question as well as many symbols and themes are in the short story “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst. The story takes place during World War 1 in South Carolina. However the main themes are the power of selfish pride and pushing someone past their limits. The two main symbols are the Scarlet Ibis that represents Doodle, and the hurricane that represents the narrator.
In the story, the scarlet Ibis symbolizes the main protagonist, Doodle. Doodle and the bird were rare, beautiful, and fragile, and they both got pushed passed their limits. When the scarlet ibis landed in Doodles back yard, it had been injured from being pushed past its limit by the hurricane. Instead of resting the bird tried to fly and ended up falling to its death. Doodle, at the time, became injured and feverish by the intense training and pushing from his brother. He even said, “Does it make any difference” (306) when asked by the narrator if he was okay being different. Doodle tried nevertheless to keep training, and like the Scarlet Ibis, he pushed himself too far to his eventual death.
The hurricane in the story proves to be the most significant symbol. The narrator symbolized the hurricane due to his pushing Doodle too hard and ultimately causing his unjust fate, much like the Scarlet Ibis and the real hurricane. At the age of five Doodle could not walk; consequently, the narrator’s embarrassment caused his selfish pride to take over, and made Doodle learn to walk. After showing his parents that Doodle can walk, the narrator’s father was so pleased with him that he hugged him but then asked, “What are you crying for” (217). The narrator realized that his teaching Doodle to walk was for his pride and not actually for Doodle. Eventually, the narrator wanted to teach Doodle to swim, canoe and even climb trees because he believed in his own “infallibility”. When the narrator began increasing his training pace because of the approach of the school year, Doodle could not keep up and began to feel feverish. He had trouble sleeping and had nightmares; however, the narrator mercilessly continued Doodle’s training. He had been pushed too far and out of anger the narrator left Doodle in the heavy rain and by himself. Just like Doodle, where his brother pushed him over the limit to his death, the Scarlet Ibis had been pushed from Florida all the way to South Carolina by the hurricane. The bird was injured much like doodle, and in attempt to fly, it pushed itself to far, causing it to fall to its death.
The Scarlet Ibis is a story that shows the power of selfish pride and pushing someone past their limits through it’s many symbols. The hurricane or the narrator shows the power of pushing someone or something. While being pushed past his limits ended up killing Doodle, if you raise your expectations higher then normal for someone, it will encourage them to work harder.