Muzic-Rox-My-World

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Hey guys, what's up...

Aya, because I'm going to Bangkok, I can't attend Den's party. Anyway, today my pants were so loose, more than half of my underwear was showing. Thank God I was wearing a big shirt that covered everything. Ok, I'm sorry cause' all of you find my previous joke disgusting. I am TRULY sorry. In any case, I am done with my final draft for my first literary anlaysis. (Insert applause). I'll show it to you guys it just a short while.

Earlier today, while Den, Bryce (her classmate), Clara (her classmate, and me were eating lunch, I was telling Den about what Ave put on her blog. Waliao! She went to call Ave up and apologised. Ok, that's not a crime, but she sdaid that I told her about it! I don't know if Ave is angry with me right now, but I am once again very sorry. I thought it was ok since Den's her friend. So you're (Ave) not pissed off or anything right?

Ok, here's my literary analysis, I hope you enjoy it. Please comment on all of my essays. Thank you:

“Literary analysis on ‘The Scarlet Ibis’” by Daniel

This is a literary analysis on “The Scarlet Ibis”. The story is written by James Hurst, who uses symbols in his story. Hurst mentions the story’s symbols, the specific year the story took place, the primary symbol’s and Doodle’s physical and spiritual similarities. Hurst also makes the story most captivating with his ingenious use of interior monologue.

A symbol, in its basic sense, is a representational token for a concept or quantity. In the story, Hurst uses the Scarlet Ibis as the primary symbol to represent Doodle. The Ibis, being in the story, creates a melancholic mood as it is similar to Doodle in terms of his spirit. Having the Scarlet Ibis as the primary symbol in the story is important as it emphasizes on the kind of feeling that the writer is trying to convey through his work. They also enhance the degree of emotions the characters may have. Symbols are also important due to the fact that they both represent the spirit of a character, which in this case, is Doodle, as mentioned earlier. With the striking resemblance of Doodle and the Scarlet Ibis, readers are more likely to feel the sympathy behind the story, which is very important as that, is mainly what Hurst is trying to do, to touch the hearts of his readers. This makes it important to consider the symbols while reading.

Another reason why to consider the symbols while reading is because the symbols usually hint out a certain type of omen that predicts what is going to happen next. For example, the Scarlet Ibis died near the bleeding tree and was buried beneath it. The bleeding tree is a theological sign that Christians take as the death of Jesus Christ. Another example is taken from the start of the story, when Hurst quotes, “The last graveyard flowers were blooming, and their smell drifted across the cotton field and through every room of our house, speaking softly the names of our dead.” This sentence emits an eerie emotion that clearly is a sign that death would be drawing near, or it already had happened.

To add on to the symbols that Hurst included in the story, Hurst also set the story in 1918 as that was when many disasters struck. For example, the World War, the drought and the storm all took place at that time. Hurst explained that Doodle’s and his brother’s struggle resembles on a minute, personal scale, the Great War. This is because both situations are caused due to the desire to transform others to one’s own image.

Doodle and the Scarlet Ibis have a lot of many other things in common. This can be ascertained through how they react to certain situations like death and difficulty. One example is their death position. The writer quotes, “Its (the Scarlet Ibis) long, graceful neck jerked twice into an S, then straightened out, and the bird was still.” He also quotes later, “He (Doodle) lay very awkwardly with his head thrown far back, making his vermilion neck appear unusually long and slim.” These two quotes show their physical similarity.

Their spiritual similarity, which is both of them having the courage and determination to accomplish their goals no matter how difficult it may be, is also stated in the passage. They are quoted as “At that moment the bird (the Scarlet ibis) began to flutter, but the wings were uncoordinated, and amid much flapping and a spray of feathers, it tumbled down, bumping through the limbs of the bleeding tree, and landing at our feet with a thud”, and “Trembling, he’d (Doodle) push himself up, first turning red, then a soft purple, and finally collapse back onto the bed like an old worn-out-doll.”. The two also felt similarly when their death was near. To prove this, Hurst mentioned in his story, “‘It (the Scarlet Ibis) looks tired,’ Daddy added. ‘Or maybe sick’” and “Doodle was both tired and frightened.”

“The Scarlet Ibis” is a fantastic story which not only uses symbols to represent one of the characters (Doodle), but it also is written in such a way that the readers can deeply understand how both parties, Doodle and his brother felt, despite the fact that the story is a 1st person narrative. This is due to the ingenious use of interior monologue. For example, we can tell how the writer about that his five-year old brother not being able to walk because of the quote “I was embarrassed at having a brother of that age who couldn’t walk…” This use of interior monologue really helps the readers to get into the characters’ heads and understand their emotions and the reasons that drive them.

The story also concludes with an excellent statement that, as Hurst added, is something like a classic cry of all mankind wishing to belong and never to be lonely. This, the similarities between the Ibis and Doodle, the perfect year for this story to take place, the secondary symbols in the story and the use of interior monologue are what make “The Scarlet Ibis” worth reading.

Solemn Perfectionist rocked the house on 2:28 PM