“The Scarlet Ibis” By: James Hurst Project By: Emily Dunne Benet Bravo Alanis Dilic P.3

Summary The narrator is 6 when he gets a new baby brother but he’s not like other children. They don’t name the child, he’s said to not live long. The boy does live and named William Armstrong, then named Doodle. Doodle seemed to have disabilities while growing up. He didn’t walk at a normal age, and he was small. The family loved him just the same, except for his brother. His brother was embarrassed of Doodle because he wasn’t “normal”. His brother wanted to teach Doodle to be like other kids. He helped Doodle to walk, and the family saw that as such a great thing, when inside it was for selfish purposes. This is a struggle for the narrator, as he loves Doodle, but he wants to change him too. He pushes Doodle to do more, like swimming, running, and to go to school. In the midst of it, the family spotted a dead Ibis in a tree. No one gave it much thought but Doodle buried it, sang to it, and gave it a proper goodbye. Eventually Doodle was back to working with his brother. School was starting soon, and the brother wanted Doodle to do so much more before it began. As they worked, a storm came through. The boys tried to run home but Doodle fell behind. The brother was so angry that they couldn’t achieve everything, so he ran ahead and left Doodle. Later, the narrator came back for Doodle, but it was too late. He was bleeding, crouched on the ground. Just like the Ibis.

Major Conflicts in the Story In the story, The main conflict happened with the narrator and himself. Otherwise known as Person Vs Self. The narrator is having a difficult time coping with his brother’s disabilities. He wants Doodle to be “normal”. To be like all the other kids his age. The narrator is embarrassed of Doodle. He tries to change his brother for his own selfish reasons to make himself feel better. Ultimately this leads to Doodle’s death in the case that the narrator ran away in a storm out of anger that he couldn’t help Doodle achieve what he wanted him to. Coming back for Doodle, he sees his brother curled up, bleeding from the neck. The narrator’s pride was so bad that it ultimately allowed him to leave Doodle to die.

Setting The setting takes place in Eastern North Carolina, in the early 1900s, on a farm, near Old Woman Swamp, and an ocean. The story takes place over many years as Doodle grows up.

Theme General and Specific The general theme of the story is “love and pride” On a more specific level, the theme is “Don’t let pride get in the way of the things you love” The narrator loved his brother, of course, but truly loving someone means that you love them just the way they are. The narrator continuously tried changing, and making Doodle work, only for his benefit of not getting embarrassed any time he was around Doodle. He let his pride get in the way, eventually leading to Doodle’s death because they couldn’t achieve what they wanted, making the narrator storm off without his brother.

Literary Elements Characters: Doodle and the narrator. 3 important literary elements of the story are: Characters: Doodle and the narrator. The narrator was prideful of his image. He believed that Doodle would ruin it. He had an internal battle with changing Doodle, some out of love, some out of pride. Pride eventually took over, and Doodle ended up dead. This trait relates to the theme because the narrator did love Doodle…but his pride got in the way. Language With the language the narrator uses, it shows how much he loves, and hates his brother. This shares the theme of love and pride because the narrator loves his brother for who he is inside. Doodle is smart, funny, and adventurous. Along with that, the narrator hates Doodle’s disabilities. He verbally expresses this too, out of his pride and sake of image to others. Mood The mood ultimately seems gloomy throughout the story. It leads to Doodle’s death, which is caused by the narrator’s pride, eventually leading back to the theme of love and pride…therefore gives the story a bad feeling.

Important Notes & Questions Near the end of the story, when the storm has already begun, and Doodle still isn’t ready to go to school. This angers the narrator, which leads him to abandon Doodle in the woods. This shows how he reacts for not getting what he wanted to achieve. However, the narrator quickly comes to regret what he has done. After the storm died down, the narrator starts to look for Doodle. When he discovers Doodle’s corpse, he forgets his anger, and is overwhelmed with sadness. This shows that at that moment, the narrator truly thought of the accomplishments he and Doodle achieved.

Begin the Quiz! 1: How old was the narrator when Doodle was born? A: 5 B: 7 C:10 D: 6 2: What was at least 1 thing the narrator wanted Doodle to achieve? 3: What was different about the Scarlet Ibis to Doodle than it was to the family? 4: Why did the Narrator leave Doodle in the storm? 5: How did the narrator encourage Doodle to exercise everyday? 6: How did Doodle handle seeing his own casket? 7: True or False? Doodle hated his brother for making him exercise

The Quiz Answers 1: B 2: Any kind of exercise (swimming, running, walking, etc.) or wanting Doodle to “Be normal” are acceptable 3: The Ibis was like Doodle in the sense that it was helpless. He loved the dead bird. He sang and buried him and gave it a proper goodbye, unlike his family. 4: The narrator abandoned Doodle because Doodle didn’t achieve what his brother wanted him to. 5: The narrator and Doodle pictured a future together, living happily, and with the family. 6: Doodle didn’t understand why they kept it, but he was still traumatized. 7: False

The End!