“The Scarlet Ibis”
Notes to help you study by…
English 9 Honors
Disclaimer
• This is a lot of information. All of the information is
relevant but you will not be tested on everything
included in this Power Point. Some of the
information is repetitive. Pick out the key points
using your handouts.
Non Linear
Plot
Nonlinear narrative is a technique sometimes
used in literature wherein events are portrayed
out of chronological order. It is often used to
mimic the structure and recall of human
memory.
Examples:
•The Notebook
•Forrest Gump
NON- LINEAR TECHNIQUES
•
•
•
•
Foreshadowing
Flashback
Sub-plot
Parallel plot structure
FORESHADOWING
• To show or indicate beforehand
• Reveal an upcoming event
Example:
•In the opening of The Wizard of Oz, set in
Kansas, the transformation of Miss Gulch
into a witch on a broomstick foreshadows
her reappearance as Dorothy's enemy in Oz.
FLASHBACKS
• A transition (in literary or theatrical works or
films) to an earlier event or scene that interrupts
the normal chronological development of the story
• An unexpected but vivid recurrence of a past
experience
Example:
Forrest Gump reminisces about past
experiences in his life while he waits
for a bus.
SUBPLOTS
• A secondary story in a narrative. A subplot may serve as
a motivating or complicating force for the main plot of
the work, or it may provide emphasis for, or relief from,
the main plot.
1. That with the present day characters.
2. Plot taking place in the past.
PARALLEL STRUCTURE
Definition:
Two or more major plots that occur
within a story and usually intersect.
POINT OF VIEW
(POV)
POV
Definition:
Determines who is telling the
story—the perspective, or vantage
point from which an author presents a
story.
FIRST PERSON POV
Definition:
In first person point of view, the story is told by
one of the characters.
Example:
As I placed a carefully wrapped
package on the park bench, I looked up
and saw Holly walking across the
street. I hoped that she hadn’t seen me.
THIRD PERSON POV
Definition:
In the third-person point of view the
story is told by a narrator who is not a
character in the story.
Types:
Limited Omniscient Narrator
relates the thoughts and feelings of just one character
Omniscient Narrator
knows the thoughts and feelings of all the characters
EXAMPLES
Limited Omniscient Narrator
As Sheldon placed the carefully
wrapped package on the park bench, he
looked up and saw Holly walking across the
street.
Omniscient Narrator
Sheldon anxiously hoping that no one
was watching him, placed a carefully wrapped
package on an empty park bench. But Holly,
who was walking home, saw him and couldn’t
help thinking that he was acting strangely.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT…
You must be able to do more than simply
identify the point of view:
1.How does the point of view affect your responses to
the characters?
2. How is your response influenced by how much the
narrator knows and how objective he or she is?
3. First person narrators are not always trust worthy.
How will you determine what is the truth and what is
not?
IMAGERY
the use of language to
create mental images and
sensory impressions.
Imagery can be used for
emotional effect and to
intensify the impact on the
reader.
Essential Questions
• How does fear shape our decisions &
actions? How is the narrator of “Ibis”
motivated by fear?
• Can evil be determined by a (single) act of
cruelty? Is the narrator evil?
• How does Hurst make a statement about our
obligations to our fellow man (brotherhood)?
• Can a good act be considered noble if it was
committed with impure intentions?
The Basics: Key Literary Elements
• Protagonist: Narrator (Doodle’s brother)
• Antagonist: Doodle
• Conflicts: man v man; man v self
• POV: 1st person limited (Brother)
• Setting: Coastal North Carolina, 1912-1918
• Significant Techniques: figurative
language, symbolism, flashback
• Figurative Lang: similes, metaphors, color
imagery (red = blood)
Characters: Brother
• The lead protagonist of the story &
narrator
• Not given a name; only referred to as
“Brother”
• 6 years old when Doodle is born
• Sense of pride in his ability to run, jump,
and climb – wants a brother to share in
these activities
• Ashamed of Doodle’s limitations &
regularly taunts him
Characters: Brother
• Though he loves Doodle, the love is
tainted with cruelty and embarrassment
• Reluctantly allows Doodle to accompany
him; pulls him in his go-cart
• Ashamed at having a crippled sibling,
Brother secretly teaches Doodle to walk.
• Not enough, he pushes him to do more
• Eventually, he breaks into a run leaving
Doodle trailing
Characters: Brother
• Doodle overstrains himself and dies of a
heart attack
• Brother weeps over his fallen brother
and recognizes the symbolic link
between Doodle and the beautiful, rare
scarlet ibis that had fallen dead from a
tree in the family garden earlier that day.
Characters: Doodle
• The mentally and physically challenged
younger brother of the narrator
• Given the name, William Armstrong
because it will look good on a tombstone
(as he wasn’t expected to live past his
infancy).
• Eventually given the nickname Doodle
(after a doodle-bug because of his habit
of crawling backwards) by Brother
Characters: Doodle
Characters: Doodle
• From the first, Doodle is a
disappointment to his family, especially
to his brother, because he can only lie on
a rubber sheet and crawl backwards.
• Everyone expects him to die, but Doodle
defies them all and survives, becoming a
loving boy with a strong attachment to
Brother.
Characters: Doodle
• Doodle is pulled around in a go-cart by
Brother until Brother teaches Doodle to
walk. This achievement, however,
seems more important to Brother than it
does to Doodle.
• Doodle’s real strengths are in his spirit.
• From the beginning, Doodle defies death
and refuses to recognize the coffin that
Daddy builds for him as his own.
Characters: Doodle
• He shows a sense of wonder and
respect for nature, crying with wonder at
the beauty of Old Woman Swamp.
• He is the first to notice the ibis and
honors the bird by giving it a careful
burial while finding a way of respecting
his mother’s orders not to touch it.
• This shows his compassionate heart and
emphasizes a symbolic link b/n boy and
bird.
Characters: Doodle
• This symbolic link is confirmed when
Doodle dies on the same day as the bird
and in a way that mirrors its fate.
• Doodle’s greatest fear is of being left
behind by his impatient Brother.
• When this happens, he dies of a heart
attack (heart break) while trying to keep
up with Brother.
Characters: Aunt Nicey
• Aunt to Brother and Doodle
• Delivers Doodle and is the only person who
believes he will live
• Has a religious nature, giving thanks when Doodle
shows everyone that he can walk.
• Because Doodle is born with a caul, traditionally
“Jesus’ nightgown”, she warns that he should be
treated with special respect since he may turn out
to be a saint.
Characters: Aunt Nicey
• Though prompted by superstitious
belief, the comment shows an
appreciation of Doodle’s spiritual
qualities and foreshadows a suggested
symbolic link between Doodle, the Ibis,
and Christ (DISCLAIMER)
• Occasionally a baby is born with its head
partially covered by fetal membrane. This
membrane has been called a caul, and it
has attracted a number of superstitions
and folk remedies. In the north of
England, the caul was called "sillyhow,"
meaning blessed hood (Radford and
Radford 1974: 92). Fishermen carried a
caul as an amulet while at sea to protect
them from drowning, and also from
seasickness and scurvy (Souter 1995: 40).
In Scotland it was believed that a person
born with a caul had special healing
powers (Beith 1995: 94).
FYI: Caul
Setting (establishing atmosphere)
• The writer uses the swamp as a
backdrop for the dev’t of the
relationship b/n the narrator & Doodle.
• The swamp often suggests feelings of
melancholy.
• At one point, the narrator says that the
swamp is full of “the sweet-sick smell
of bay flowers” that hang everywhere
“like a mournful song”.
Setting (establishing atmosphere)
• The story also takes place during WWI,
& the knowledge that soldiers &
citizens are being killed & wounded in
the war provides an appropriate
background for the story
• Doodle dies as afternoon is turning to
evening and summer is turning to fall.
This makes his death seem more
natural, a part of the larger scheme
Setting (establishing atmosphere)
• This ties Doodle more to nature
• It also makes it clear that something
sweet & full of life has ended.
Point of View
• At the time of Doodle’s death, the
narrator is 12-years old.
• When he tells the story, the narrator
is an adult, & the intervening years
have distanced him from Doodle & his
death, making the episode seem
more poetic & less terrifying that it
seems at the time.
Point of View
• He can be philosophical about his own
role in Doodle’s life & death.
• If the story were told by the narrator at
a younger age, it would probably be
less reflective & symbolic, more
devoted to the actual horror of the
death and the aftermath (the funeral,
etc.)
Mood
• The first paragraph creates a serious,
gently melancholic mood, and its
references to life and death, the
“bleeding” tree, and the garden
“stained” with petals, foreshadow the
later events in the story.
• The reference to the oriole nest,
“untenanted and rock[ing] back and
forth like an empty cradle,” also
foreshadows Doodle’s death.
Mood
• The reference to the graveyard flowers
suggests that the story will be about
death.
• This entire first paragraph creates a
mood of sadness and loss, appropriate
to the story as a whole.
Symbols: Doodle’s Death
• Doodle dies from pulmonary or
coronary hemorrhage, brought on
by strenuous exercise.
• His weak heart is mentioned earlier
in the story
Symbols: Bird
• Doodle’s fantasy about the peacock.
Peacocks are associated with pride
(the narrator)
• The peacock is linked to the scarlet
ibis. Doodle is himself a rare and
wonderful bird.
• The scarlet ibis is a beautiful, delicate,
unusual, and ephemeral bird when it
appears in the story – also out of
place. So is Doodle when he appears
in the narrator’s life.
Symbols: Coffin
• The narrator shows Doodle the coffin
in part to be mean, but also to have
Doodle realize that his health has been
precarious from the beginning.
• Doodle touches the coffin because the
narrator will not carry him down from
the loft if he doesn’t.
• On a deeper level, Doodle’s touching
the coffin may indicate an attempt to
deal with the possibility of his own
death.
Symbols: Coffin & Go-Cart
• The go-cart is another wooden box
build by the father.
• Just as the coffin reflected an
expectation of Doodle’s death, the gocart mirrored the family’s expectation
that Doodle would forever be confined.
Symbols: Coffin & Go-Cart
• His brother also limits him with the
nickname “Renaming my brother was
perhaps the kindest thing I ever did for
him, because nobody expects much
from someone called Doodle”
• Aunt Nicey does not approve – she
sees Doodle’s spiritual potential; it
isn’t fitting of a saint.
SYMBOL: Doodle & the Ibis
(the final metaphor)
• Doodle’s neck appears unusually long
and slim, like the bird’s.
• Bird blown away from its native habitat
by a hurricane (seen as bad luck by Aunt
Nicey); Doodle, too, is left behind in a
storm.
• STORM: symbolic of conflict / inner
turmoil (archetype).
SYMBOL: Doodle & the Ibis
(the final metaphor)
• Like the bird’s, the boy’s neck is
vermilion, for he has hemorrhaged.
• His legs, bent sharply at the knees,
seem rather like the bird’s legs.
• Doodle’s breast is red with blood, just
as the bird’s breast is red.
Motifs: the bond b/n the boys
• They both have vivid imaginations and
enjoy spinning elaborate fantasies. This
“lying” creates a strong bond between
them (also symbolizes that all they are
doing to make Doodle stronger is itself a
fantasy).
• They also both have a great appreciation
of Old Woman Swamp.
• The two stick by each other; Doodle
doesn’t tell his parents how the narrator
makes him exercise and the narrator
takes him everywhere.
Motifs: Doodle’s Favorite Lie
(characterization)
• Doodle’s story about the
peacock and his plans for the
future indicate that he is a
gentle, bright, poetic, and
highly imaginative child.
Religious Imagery (DISCLAIMER)
• Doodle is born with a caul,
“Jesus’s nightgown”
•The ibis rests on a “bleeding” tree
/ wooden cross of the crucifixion
• The ibis dies & falls from the tree/
Christ dies on the cross
Religious Imagery (DISCLAIMER)
• Colors of the dead ibis: scarlet
feathers & white veil over the
eyes = symbolic colors of the
Passion of Christ (Easter
colors), evoking earthly
suffering and spiritual serenity
(humanity & divinity)
Religious Imagery (DISCLAIMER)
• Doodle kneels before the dead
ibis and reverently buries the
bird while other members of his
family continue their lunch (the
disciples cared for Jesus’s body
after death while the unbelievers
carried on with their lives)
Religious Imagery (DISCLAIMER)
• Doodle provides an opportunity for
Brother to learn and exercise the
Christ-like virtues of unconditional
love and compassion.
• Though Brother fails to learn this
while Doodle is alive, his penitent
tears over Doodle’s dead body & his
awareness of the dangers of pride
show he has learned his lesson –
albeit at the cost of Doodle’s life.
Religious Imagery (DISCLAIMER)
• Doodle, therefore, can be considered
to be a literary Christ figure – both
had to die so that those left alive
could learn the gospel of love and
compassion
• In sheltering Doodle’s body with his
own from the “heresy of rain”,
Brother finally gives Doodle the
selfless love & protection that he was
unable to do in Doodle’s life.
Quotes & Themes:
“Pride is a wonderful, terrible thing,
a seed that bears two vines, life
and death”
• The narrator’s pride in Doodle is
wonderful in that he gets Doodle to
accomplish things he would not have
otherwise achieved.
• The narrator’s pride also cements the
two together in a wonderful relationship.
Quotes & Themes:
“Pride is a wonderful, terrible thing,
a seed that bears two vines, life
and death”
• The pride is terrible, however, in that the
narrator does not always consider
Doodle’s best interests, and he pushes
Doodle beyond the limits of his physical
capabilities. This leads to Doodle’s
death.
Quotes & Themes:
“It was too late to turn back, for
we had both wandered too far into
a net of expectations and had left
no crumbs behind”
• The narrator & Doodle have both come
to realize that Doodle cannot perform
some of the physical tasks set for him.
• They do not dare admit this, for to give
up their expectations would be to admit
defeat, and their relationship relies too
heavily upon these expectations.
Objective:
Students will analyze word
choice, setting, mood, and
characterization by annotating
the opening paragraphs of “The
Scarlet Ibis.”
CCSS
RL.9-10.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are
used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings;
analyze the cumulative impact of several word choices on meaning and
tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it
sets a formal or informal tone).
L.9-10.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word
relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
SL.9-10.1 Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative
discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse
partners on grades 9–10 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’
ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
Close Reading
Read the opening paragraph of “The Scarlet Ibis.”
Annotate the first paragraph paying special attention to
Hurst’s choice of words and details about the setting.
What mood is established in this opening paragraph?
It was in the clove of seasons, summer was dead but
autumn had not yet been born, that the ibis lit in the
bleeding tree. The flower garden was stained with rotting
brown magnolia petals and ironweeds grew rank amid the
purple phlox. The five o'clocks by the chimney still
marked time, but the oriole nest in the elm was
untenanted and rocked back and forth like an empty
cradle. 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. It's strange hat all this is still so clear to me,
now that that summer has since fled and time has had its
way. A grindstone stands where the bleeding tree stood,
just outside the kitchen door, and now if an oriole sings in
the elm, its song seems to die up in the leaves, a silvery
dust.
a type of millstone used to grind grains such as wheat
Bleeding Tree
A “bleeding tree” is one that
has a condition known as
gummosis. It causes the tree
to “bleed” sap through its
bark. This condition is a
symptom of several possible
diseases, and is commonly
seen in both pines and fruit
trees. An early warning sign
that something else is wrong,
gummosis doesn't necessarily
mean that the tree will die,
but it does mean that you
should take a closer look to
see what's causing the
bleeding
The Landscape
Objective:
Students will explore the concept
of the unreliable narrator by
using Cornell notes to find
textual evidence in “The Scarlet
Ibis.”
CCSS
RI.9-10.1 Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to
support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as
inferences drawn from the text.
L.9-10.5 Demonstrate understanding of figurative language,
word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.
SL.9-10.1 Initiate and participate effectively in a range of
collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and
teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 9–10 topics,
texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing
their own clearly and persuasively.
Something to think about:
What responsibilities if any do older
siblings have towards their younger
siblings?
Ask yourself, can I trust this narrator?
Is he or she credible?
Unreliable Narrators
The unreliable narrator is a narrator who can't be trusted.
Either from ignorance or self-interest, this narrator speaks
with a bias, makes mistakes, or even lies. Part of the
pleasure and challenge of the 1st person narrator stories is
finding the truth, and understanding why the narrator is not
straightforward.
“Scarlet Ibis” Cornell Notes
Original Text
So what…
My Inferences
Objective:
Students will conduct a character trial by using a graphic
organizer to support their claims with textual evidence.
Literary Definition of Motivation
Motivation
A reason that explains
why a character
behaves in a certain
way.
Question of the Day
Is the narrator guilty of murdering his little
brother?
Legal Definition of Murder
1st degree murder: The killing of a human
being by a sane person, with intent,
malice aforethought (prior intention to kill
the particular victim or anyone who gets
in the way) and with no legal excuse or
authority. In those clear circumstances,
this is first degree murder.
2nd Degree murder: The killing of a human
being without premeditation, as in the
heat of passion or in a sudden quarrel or
fight. Malice in second degree murder
may be implied from a death due to the
reckless lack of concern for the life of
others (such as firing a gun into a crowd or
bashing someone with any deadly
weapon). Depending on the
circumstances and state laws, murder in
the first or second degree may be
chargeable to a person who did not
actually kill, but was involved in a crime
with a partner who actually did the killing
or someone died as the result of the
crime.
Manslaughter: the unlawful killing of another
person without premeditation
How are symbols used?
•Symbolism allows people to communicate
beyond the limits of language
•Humans use symbolism all the time. Words
themselves are mere symbols for something
else.
•Ex: White flag represents surrender
Strategies to use when
searching for symbols
•Pay special attention to objects or places
accompanied by a lengthy description,
repetition, or special placement.
• Analyze the title.
•List objects mentioned more than once.
Strategies to use when
searching for symbols
•List objects that appear at crucial moments.
•Consider what the author is trying to say and
how it relates to the concrete objects or ideas in
the text. Is there a link between the message
and the object or idea?
Is “the bleeding tree” a symbol?
• The bleeding tree represents Doodle
• Concrete: Like the tree the bleeds a red sap,
we see Doodle bleeding at the end of the
story
• Figurative: There is an underlying issues (like
the disease in this tree) that will eventually
lead to Doodle’s death
Hurst’s Use of Flashback
 Flashback: the author or narrator depicts events which
have taken place before the present time.
 Brother (the narrator) begins the story in present, and
then flashes back to a previous time in his life.
 The use of flashback alerts the reader that the story
itself is a memory.
 The use of flashback also characterizes Brother as
someone who is now more mature and regrets his
treatment of his little brother Doodle.
Summarizer—“Dear Diary . . .”
 “The Scarlet Ibis” is told from Brother’s perspective
through a flashback.Your job is to write a diary entry
using flashback from the perspective of Doodle instead,
who survives and is now grown up and mature like
Brother.
 In his diary entry, Doodle should reflect on one of the
events of the story, revealing what he has learned from
the experience now that he is older.
 This Summarizing activity should begin, “Dear Diary,”
and be 5 to 7 sentences.
Order of Events
A. A scarlet ibis dies in the family’s front yard.
B. Brother finds Doodle dead, with blood staining his neck red.
C. Brother makes Doodle touch his coffin in the barn loft.
D. Brother pushes Doodle to learn how to run, swim, climb,
E.
F.
G.
H.
etc.
Brother runs ahead of Doodle in a thunderstorm, even
though he hears him crying, “Don’t leave me, Brother!”
Brother takes Doodle to Old Woman Swamp for the first
time.
Doodle learns to crawl, but he crawls backward, hence his
nickname.
Doodle learns to walk, surprising all of the family.
Plot Points
 Exposition
 Protagonist and Narrator=Brother, who starts the story with a flashback.
 Everyone thinks Doodle will die, but he lives and learns to crawl at age 3.
 Rising Action
 Embarrassed by Doodle, Brother teaches Doodle how to walk at age 6.
 Brother pushes Doodle to learn to do more, and is cruel to him at times.
 A scarlet ibis dies in the family’s front yard.
 Climax
 Brother runs far ahead of Doodle during a severe thunderstorm.
 Doodle cries out for Brother to wait, but Brother’s pride is too hurt.
 Falling Action
 Brother turns around to go get Doodle out of the rain.
 Resolution/Denouement
 Brother finds Doodle dead and cries over his body in the rain.
Setting
Time: 1912-1918—World
War I; summer
Place: North Carolina; cotton
farm; Old Woman Swamp.
Conflict
• Man vs. Man: the struggle
exists between the
narrator and Doodle.
• James Hurst uses the war
raging among “brothers”
in Europe to demonstrate
the conflict between the
narrator and Doodle.
Allusions
 There are three allusions in “The Scarlet Ibis.”
 Battle sites of WWI: Chateau-Thierry, Soissons, and
Belleau Wood
 The story of Hansel and Gretel: “It was too late to turn
back, for we had both wandered too far into a net of
expectations and had left no crumbs behind.”
 Biblical Resurrection: “If we produced anything less than
the Resurrection, [Aunt Nicey] was going to be
disappointed.”
Foreshadowing
 Summer of 1918 was
devastating: plant growth
was replaced by death and
decay.
 Clue that Doodle’s growth
will be replaced by death
and decay.
 The death of the Ibis.
 Clue that Doodle will die
later in the story.
 Dead birds are “bad luck.”
Similes
 “William Armstrong’s name is like putting a big tail on a
small kite.”
 This simile compares Doodle to a small kite and his real name
to a big tail, emphasizing how Brother thinks Doodle can’t live
up to the name “William Armstrong.”
 “Promise hung about us like leaves.”
 This simile compares promise to the multitude of leaves,
suggesting that there is a lot of potential.
 “Hope no longer hid in the dark palmetto thicket, but
perched like a cardinal in the lacy toothbrush tree,
brilliantly visible.”
 This simile compares hope to a cardinal, highlighting how much
hope there is for Doodle when he first stands on his own.
Metaphors
 “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.”
 This metaphor compares love to the flow of streams,
whether water or blood, and highlights how it is
Brother’s love for Doodle that leads to his cruelty
toward him, and Doodle’s destruction.
 “Pride is a wonderful, terrible thing, a seed that
bears two vines, life and death.”
 This metaphor compares pride to a seed which grows
into something both positive and negative.
Theme
 One of the possible themes of “The Scarlet Ibis” is pride
is destructive.
 Lines like the following support this theme:
 “All of us must have something to be proud of.”
 Because Brother must have something to be proud of, he pushes
Doodle harder than he ever should have, leading to Doodle’s
death.
 “Pride is a wonderful, terrible thing, a seed that bears
two vines, life and death.”
 Comparing pride to a seed which grows into death emphasizes
how it is Brother’s pride which ultimately causes Doodle’s
death.
Symbolism and Imagery
 Symbol: a person, place,
or thing used to
represent something else.
 Imagery: descriptive
language that appeals to
the five senses.
Analyzing Symbolism and Imagery
Example
SYMBOL: Scarlet Ibis (p. 392393)
REPRESENTS: Doodle
QUOTE: “A white veil came
over the eyes and the long
white beak unhinged” (393).
MEANING: The “white veil”
represents the caul that
covered Doodle when he was
born.
Symbols and Images
 Scarlet Ibis
 Caul
 Bleeding tree
 Old Woman Swamp
 Rotting brown
 Wreaths of flowers





magnolia
Graveyard flowers
Mahogany coffin
Grindstone
Black clouds and
darkness
Ironweeds grew rank