“A Scarlet Ibis“ Literary Essay

4 Pages 889 Words

Prompt: In the story “The Scarlet Ibis” James Hurst uses setting imagery to parallel characterization. The two aspects of characterization that are reflected through the author’s use of setting imagery are [ the hopes and dreams] and [the disappointments] of the main characters.

In “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, setting imagery is used to parallel the characters’ moods. He uses these forms of nature to reflect both [ the hopes and dreams ] and [ the disappointments ] of the main characters. [ The first illustration of setting imagery is when Hurst describes the hopes and dreams, the hopes of Doodle being able to walk, and how it became reality. ] { Doodle had a title of being “Handicapped” hanging over his head. } { The brother had a problem with having a “Handicapped” brother, so he set out to teach him [ Doodle] how to walk. } James Hurst, describes when the dream of having Doodle be able to walk becomes a reality here,

“Finally one day, after many weeks of practicing, he [ Doodle ] stood alone for a few seconds. When he fell, I grabbed him in my arms and hugged him, our laughter pealing through the swamp like a ringing bell. Now we knew it could be done. Hope no longer hid in the dark palmetto thicket but perched like a cardinal in the lacy toothbrush tree, brilliantly visible. “Yes, Yes,” I cried and he cried it too.”

This passage shows how the brother’s dream went from hope to reality. The brother and his family thought that Doodle would never be able to stand on his own, let alone walk. Doodle’s walking wasn’t very important, but since the dream had existed in his brother’s head for weeks, Doodle made his brother’s dream become a reality. It is this picture of setting imagery that James Hurst has built his story around that continues the hope and dreams of the main characters’, both as a dream and now a reality for the family to remember. This very moment is a moment that Dood...