he stepped from the skiff he collapsed onto the
mud, sending an armada of fiddler crabs rustling
off into the marsh grass. I helped him up, and as
he wiped the mud off his trousers, he smiled at
me ashamedly. He had failed and we both knew
it, so we started back home, racing the storm. We
never spoke (What are the words that can solder
cracked pride?), but I knew he was watching me,
watching for a sign of mercy. The lightning was
near now, and from fear he walked so close behind
me he kept stepping on my heels. The faster I
walked, the faster he walked, so I began to run.
The rain was coming, roaring through the pines,
and then, like a bursting Roman candle, a gum
I hadn't run too far before I became tired, and
the flood of childish spite evanesced as well. I
stopped and waited for Doodle. The sound of rain
was everywhere, but the wind had died and it fell
straight down in parallel paths like ropes hanging
from the sky. As I waited, I peered through the
downpour, but no one came. Finally I went back
and found him huddled beneath a red nightshade
bush beside the road. He was sitting on the
ground, his face buried in his arms, which were
resting on his drawn-up knees. "Let's go, Doo
dle," I said.
He didn't answer, so I placed my hand on his
tree ahead of us was shattered by a bolt of light
forehead and lifted his head. Limply, he fell back
ward onto the earth. He had been bleeding from
ning. When the deafening peal of thunder had
the mouth, and his neck and the front of his shirt
died, and in the moment before the rain arrived,
were stained a brilliant red.
I heard Doodle, who had fallen behind, cry out,
"Doodle! Doodle!" I cried, shaking him, but
there was no answer but the ropy rain. He lay
"Brother, Brother, don't leave me! Don't leave
me!"
The knowledge that Doodle's and my plans had
come to naught was bitter, and that streak of cru
elty within me awakened. I ran as fast as I could,
leaving him far behind with a wall of rain dividing
us. The drops stung my face like nettles,9 and the
wind flared the wet glistening leaves of the bor
dering trees. Soon I could hear his voice no more.
9. nettles: plants with leaves that sting.
very awkwardly, with his head thrown far back,
making his vermilion neck appear unusually long
and slim. His little legs, bent sharply at the knees,
had never before seemed so fragile, so thin.
I began to weep, and the tear-blurred vision in
red before me looked very familiar. "Doodle!" I
screamed above the pounding storm and threw my
body to the earth above his. For a long, long time,
it seemed forever, I lay there crying, sheltering
my fallen scarlet ibis from the heresy of rain.
1m Schemer /S/s
m\
Aealyzmg the Story
4. How does Doodle respond to the scarlet ibis
and to its death?
Identifying Facts
1. What do we know about the narrator of the
story? What details at the start of the story tell
us that the events he is about to relate took
place many years ago?
2. Why does the narrator teach Doodle to walk?
Why does he cry when his family congratulates
him for his effort?
3. After Doodle has learned to walk, what does
his brother try to teach him, to prepare him for
school?
176
The Elements of a Short Story
Interpreting Meanings
5. Why does Doodle die? To what extent do you
think his brother is responsible for his death?
By the end of the story, whom do you pity
more—the narrator or Doodle?
6. On one level the conflict that powers this story
involves the narrator's actual struggle to make
his brother like everyone else. On another level,
the narrator experiences an internal conflict.
Describe the narrator's internal conflict. Is it
II
rrpE seAPUEr /eis
ever resolved? How do you know?
/.-
graph, cite at least five images describing the
setting that helped give you a vivid sense of
being there. In a second paragraph, cite three
images describing the vegetation that create an
7. What do the narrator's actions and thoughts
reveal about his character: Is he jealous? Lov
ing? Cruel? Generous? Cite passages from the
story to support your answer.
8. In the last sentence, the narrator calls his
atmosphere of sorrow and loss.
brother his "fallen scarlet ibis." In what ways
does the scarlet ibis resemble Doodle? How are
'
/
/
h -•• i
their deaths similar—both in appearances and
in cause?
9. The theme of this story reveals a truth about
the effects of love and pride. In one sentence
We communicate by means of symbols. We use
sounds to stand for things in the outer physical
or more, state what you think is the theme of
the story. In spite of what's been said about
world and for ideas in our own inner worlds. The
theme rarely being stated in a story, there are
several passages of the story where the narrator
or Doodle puts his finger on the essence of the
theme. Find at least two of these passages.
10. What incidents from life as you know it could
illustrate the good and bad effects of human
pride?
W'"&£ About the Story
sounds themselves are not the things or ideas; the
sounds only symbolize, or stand for, these things
and ideas.
In literature, a symbol is somewhat different. In
literature, a symbol is a specific object, person, or
event that stands for something more or for some
thing other than itself.
In "The Scarlet Ibis" the ibis is obviously used
as a symbol for Doodle. How do we know this? The
story must give us some clues.
1. Find the sentence at the end of "The Scarlet
1. Using Another Point of View. "The Scarlet Ibis"
would be a different story if it had been told
from the point of view of Doodle. Pick a key
scene from the story and tell it from the thirdperson limited point of view, through Doodle's
senses and feelings. Write a paragraph or two.
A Critical Response
2. Explaining a Response to a Theme. Do you think
this story reveals a genuine truth about people?
Are we often cruel to those we love? Can pride
cause us to be destructive and to hurt even those
we love? Write a paragraph or more explaining
your opinion of one of these ideas. Give at least
two reasons for your response.
3. Analyzing a Character. Look back at the passage
on page 173 describing Doodle's "lies." Write a
paragraph in which you analyze Doodle's tales.
What do his characters want? What kind of world
do they live in? Why would Doodle tell this kind
of story? What do his stories reveal about his
own wants?
4. Analyzing Setting. There is a distinct feeling of
nature in "The Scarlet Ibis"—the seasons, the
drought, the vegetation identified by name, the
details of the Old Woman Swamp. In one para
Ibis" that clearly links Doodle and the red bird.
2. In question 8, you noted the similarities be
tween Doodle and the red bird. Go back and
reread closely all the passages in the story where
the ibis is mentioned. Where does Doodle show
that he himself identifies with the bird?
3. Explain how both Doodle and the bird are placed
in worlds in which they cannot survive. (Where
is the scarlet ibis's natural habitat?)
4. In a sentence, state the broader meaning that
you think the ibis has in the story.
5. What examples can you give in which the color
red is used as a symbol of love or of courage or
of a heroic death?
James Hurst (1922) was born on a farm by
the sea in North Carolina. He worked for thirty-four
years for a bank in New York City before he retired
to New Bern, North Carolina, a town very near his
birthplace. He reminds readers of "The Scarlet
Ibis" to think of how the war raging among "broth
ers" in Europe is related to the conflict between
Doodle and his brother. In both cases, people suffer
because others try to make them over "in their own
image."
The Scarlet Ibis
177
"You're going even farther?" she asked incre
dulously.
"I'll learn," he said, thinking of Uncle Vasya.
"What one man can do another man can, too."
There was silence for a while. Narrow-shoul
He nodded. "To Siberia."
She became quiet. He sensed how impressive
that name sounded to her.
"Who's going with you?" she asked again.
"I'm going by myself."
While he answered her questions, Kostya be
gan to see his trip in a new light. He had suddenly
made a discovery—he found out something about
himself he had never known: he could accomplish
tasks. The future, which up to now had appeared
fearful, suddenly became a grandiose adventure
dered, long-legged, upright, Kostya stared into the
water glistening through the trees. Absorbed in
his new ideas, he seemed to have forgotten about
the girl who sat with her arms around her round
knees, glancing at him timidly from time to time.
"Is somebody coming to see you off?" she
asked softly.
"They are." He nodded.
"Who?"
Kostya knew that Gramma and Aunt Nadya
within reach.
would come with him to the station, but somehow
"I'll guide big ships," Kostya said, getting up
from excitement. "Diesel motor ships."
he didn't feel like telling it to the girl. He made
no reply.
"I'll come too, may I?" she asked in a pattering
whisper, brushing off her wet hair from her fore
head. "We live next to the station. I'll just jump
out of the window and run up. May I?" The girl
talked fast, as if she were afraid he might stop her.
"I won't be in anybody's way, they won't even
see me. I'll just watch. May I, may I?"
"Where to?"
"To the Arctic Ocean. Beyond the Arctic Cir
cle and back. Through the taiga, tundra,7 all kinds
of animals," Kostya recalled what he knew about
Siberia. He was waiting for her to ask if he really
knew how to guide diesel motor ships, but she
didn't. Perhaps she had some doubts if he really
could do everything. He, too, had some doubts.
7. taiga (ti' ga), tundra (tun' drs): The taiga is a moist, sub
arctic evergreen forest region. North of it lies the tundra, a
treeless plain whose subsoil level is permanently frozen.
Kostya didn't answer. He looked at her with a
joyous wonderment in his heart—it was a hitherto
unknown tenderness which he realized was also a
new discovery.
K.
"^fe fefcl_D&£°
MiiiTig to fee Story
Analyzing the Story
Identifying Facts
1. At the beginning of the story, what are we told
about Kostya's appearance and his character?
(Look at what the author tells you directly and
at what you learn from other characters.)
i
2. Why does Kostya have to leave home, and why
is he so afraid of leaving?
3. Explain how Kostya's leisurely, absent-minded
bicycle ride turns into an athletic contest. Find
the details that tell how he feels as he is chas
ing the girl on the bicycle.
184 The Elements of a Short Story
4. Describe the physical conflict Kostya faces as
he tries to rescue the girl.
Interpreting Meanings
5. One way to identify a story's theme is to think
about what the main character learns during
the course of the story. Find the passage that
tells you what Kostya discovers about himself
as a result of his climactic scene on the bridge.
Why couldn't he have learned this at home,
outside the kitchen window, where we first see
him?
6. How does this new revelation change him as a
ft
'Tffa B&o&e.
person? How does it change his feelings about
/.:i.;y-z'.- '}_zz^:z?s- V-'-r.. / i i i i i n /
his own future?
Sentences, Style, and Oral Reading
Style refers to a writer's characteristic way of using
language. Many writers develop styles that their
7. In a sentence or more, state what you think is
the theme of this story—what does it reveal
about how young people learn to have confi
dence in themselves? In crossing this real
bridge, how did Kostya "bridge," or cross over,
from childhood to maturity?
8. The last line of the story suggests that Kostya
has made not one, but two discoveries. What
do you think is the second one?
9. Explain whether you think the change in Kostya
is believable. Will it last? Why?
10. The setting of this story is Russia. What details
in the plot and characterization would have to
change if it were to take place in the United
States, at the present time?
readers recognize at once. Style is created by many •
elements: by word choice (plain words or fancy
words); by sentence structure (long sentences or
short ones); by the use of description (or its ab
sence); by the use of dialogue (or its absence).
"The Bridge" and "The Scarlet Ibis" (page 168)
are examples of two different storytelling styles.
1. Read aloud the opening passages of each story.
Which story tells you directly, through dialogue,
what the problem is going to be?
2. Which story opens with a descriptive passage
that creates an atmosphere or mood?
3. Which story's opening sounds more poetic?
Which opening seems more dramatic?
4. Read aloud the passage in "The Bridge" begin
A Creative Response
ning "There was no more time to stop" and
1. Writing an Ending. What happens at the train
ending "The girl did look back" (pages 181—
station that night? Does the girl show up to see
Kostya off? Does she stay in the background, or
does Kostya introduce her to his grandmother
and aunt? Write a paragraph or more to end the
story.
182). Practice readingthe passage until you are
satisfied that your voice conveys suspense and
drama. Is suspense in the passage created by a
series of long, leisurely poetic sentences? Or is
it created by short sentences that clip along
quickly?
A Critical Response
2. Analyzing Stories. "The Bridge" is a rite-ofpassage story (see page 186), as are several
other stories in this book. Select one of the
stories you have read so far in which the main
character goes through some sort of growing-up
experience. You could choose "Antaeus" (page
111) or "The Hat" (page 143). Write at least
one paragraph explaining how this story and
"The Bridge" can be seen as rite-of-passage
stories. Before you write, fill out a chart like the
one that follows:
"The Bridge"
"^diig a2g-j: lie ""fh?t'tThe dates marking the life of the Russian writer
Nicolai Chukovski (1904-1965) show that he sur
vived the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the enor
mous devastation caused by World War II.
Chukovski was the son of a popular children's
writer. He himself concentrated on historical-fic
tion, accounts of voyages of exploration, and short
stories. Very few of his writings have been translated
into English.
Other story
What does the main
character learn?
How does he or she
learn it?
Does the character
change? How?
Does the story end
happily or unhappily?
The Bridge
185
//
; Story
In a sentence or more, state the theme of this
// . hsj.vz2j.ip" the Star- '
story as you interpret it—what ideas about the
Identifying Facts
1. Find the passage that explains why the narrator
doesn't want to go to the Christmas dance.
What does she do to try to get out of going?
2. At the dance, why does the narrator hide in the
washroom and then decide to leave with Mary
needs and fears of young people does the story
reveal? Do you agree with the story's theme—
in other words, do you find it to be a true
revelation about life as you know it?
iO.
Explain whether you think the girl's feelings in
this story could also be felt by boys.
Fortune?
3. Why does the narrator end up staying at the
dance? How is her self-esteem saved?
':!:::':.:..> /.nil; tLi 2';rs::j
Interpreting Meanings
4. Which of these words would you use to char
5.
6.
7.
acterize the narrator?
"Red Dress," most of us have suffered humili
a. Self-confident
d. Angry
b. Mean
e. Unreliable
ating experiences. The truth of the matter, how
ever, is that most humiliating experiences take
place only in our own minds—onlookers are of
c. Unsure of herself
f. Ungrateful
ten unaware of our suffering. (For instance, how
Consider what she reveals by her appearance;
many people at the Christmas dance knew that
by her actions; and by her feelings about her
self, school, and other characters. How did you
feel about this girl—did you sympathize with
her? Identify with her? Dislike her?
the narrator was suffering one of life's major
What about the character of Mary Fortune, who
rescues the girl in mid-story and then is aban
doned for her pains? Explain why you think
Mary Fortune is so scornful about the dance
and about "boy-crazy" girls. (Do you think
Mary is covering up her real feelings, or do you
think she is superior to her classmates?)
What does the narrator mean when she says
that Raymond had rescued her from "Mary For
tune's territory into the ordinary world" (page
193)? Explain whether you found the girl's re
sponse to Raymond's kiss believable.
The narrator's feelings about her mother are
an important element in "Red Dress." Explain
whether you found the girl's embarrassment
and irritation natural and understandable, or
do you think she is being unfair to her mother?
defeats when no one asked her to dance?) In
one paragraph or more, have a narrator describe
a humiliating experience: perhaps at a dance,
during a game, on the job, on the stage. Let the
narrator tell his or her own story, using the firstperson pronoun, "I."
2. Writing from Another Point of View. What are the
risks a boy is likely to take when he asks a girl
to dance? For instance, in "Red Dress," what
was Raymond Bolting thinking before he asked
the girl to dance? Did another boy want to ask
her to dance but then lost his nerve? Write a
paragraph in which Raymond or another boy is
anxiously considering these risks as he crosses
the floor toward the girl. Be sure to describe
what her response seems like from his point of
view. Let your narrator be either the boy (using
the first-person pronoun, "I") or a third-person
limited narrator who focuses on the boy's senses
and feelings.
the
3. Writing from Another Point of View. Let us hear
dance, her mother is waiting for her to "tell
her everything that had happened" (page
193). Why do you think the narrator decides
what the mother is thinking as she waits for her
daughter to return from the dance. Write a par
agraph in which the mother tells what she thinks
that she won't tell her mother about her near-
as she waits in the kitchen. Use the first-person
failure that night or about future failures?
pronoun, "I."
3. When
194
A Creative Response
1. Describing an Experience. Like the narrator in
the
narrator comes
home from
The Elements of a Short Story
H|^H!V