In A Wron Path by Eudora Welty the main character Pheonix Jackson is a hero to her grandson. The qualities of a hero can be wisdom, caring, patience and chivalris. The qualitites of Pheonix Jackson are caring, mysterious, and tough. She has to make a trip to the doctors office to get medicine for her grandson. The only way to get there is through the path in the woods. The trip is gonna take all day and she already is old and has trouble walking long distances. One main way Pheonix Jackson is a hero is that she is very caring. She is taking care of her grandson and he ends up drinking lye which is a chemical that burns skin, so it ended up burning his thraot. "Yes. Swallowed lye. When was it? January,two,three years ago" (88). She lives in the woods with her grandson so to get to the towen she has to travel down a path. Only for gandson to get better is if she gets him his medicine. “I going to the store and buy my child a little windmill they sells, made out of paper.” (69) …show more content…
Despite all the obstecales she encountered she kept going on towards the town.
She was stopped by a man who saved her from a wolf. He may have saved her but he pointed a gun at her which is bad even if your are joking. Sense she is very tough the gun does not fase her. “No, sir, I seen plenty go off closer by, in my day, and for less than what I done.” (49). There were also a ton of natural obstacles like her age and the forest. Bushes and thorns were in the way the whole time. "I in the thorny bush," she said. "Thorns, you doing your appointed work. Never want to let folks passno, sir. Old eyes thought you was a pretty littlegreen bush." (8). She had to push them out the way multiple times as they were getting stuck in her
dress. Pheonix Jackson was a mysterious character. There was no background information on her and we also never learned her age. The only inmformationm given was that she was old and black. A few times in the story she saw halucinations. “But when she went to take it there was just her own hand in the air.” (14). In the story there are no details on her belifes but what its does say is that she beilevs in ghost by her claiming to see one. “Ghost," she said sharply, "who be you the ghost of? For I have heard of nary death close by." (21-23) The ghost she sees ends up just being a scare crow in a feild. Pheionix Jacklson is a her in many ways. She is especially a hero in her grandson’s eyes. A hero can have many different characteristics, they can be courage, caring, toughness, and mysterious. In A Wron Path by Eudora Welty the character Pheonix Jackson is tough, caring and mysterious therefore she is a hero. Heros come in many different types. They can be mentaly strong, phyisacly strong, or just mysterious. If a character has any of those characteristics then they are a hero.
We are told of Phoenix?s journey into the woods on a cold December morning. Although we are know that she is traveling through woodland, the author refrains from telling us the reason for this journey. In the midst of Phoenix?s travels, Eudora Welty describes the scene: ?Deep, deep the road went down between the high green-colored banks. Overhead the live-oaks met, and it was as dark as a cave? (Welty 55). The gloomy darkness that the author has created to surround Phoenix in this scene is quite a contrast to the small Negro woman?s positive outlook; Phoenix is a very determined person who is full of life. As Phoenix begins to walk down the dark path, a black dog approaches her from a patch of weeds near a ditch. As he comes toward her, Phoenix is startled and compelled to defend herself: ?she only hit him a little with her cane. Over she went in the ditch, like a little puff of milk-weed? (55). Here, the author contrasts the main character?s strong will with her small, frail phys...
In the Writers Journey, the Hero’s Journey is emphasized heavily throughout the book. Overall, the Hero’s Journey allows you to take a piece of literature and break down the steps of the main character or protagonist. The character starts off living an ordinary life until they receive a call to an adventure that disturbs what they consider normal. You then see the trials and tribulations they go through such as the refusal of call, thresholds, determining friend or foe, so and so forth until they’ve successfully handled the ordeal. In my opinion, Atticus Finch from the book To Kill a Mockingbird is an ideal character to use when breaking down the Hero’s Journey. The way he handles defending an African American man in the 1930’s while maintaining his integrity for not only himself but his town and his family is a realistic approach towards the Hero’s Journey that works exceptionally well.
Every hero goes through a journey of their own according to Joseph Campbell in which he calls “The Hero’s Journey” . In the book The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan, Jing Mei Woo or June embarks on a journey into finding herself beginning with her mother’s past ,which reflects how she transforms into a better person as a daughter. Along the way, June encounters many allies that guides her with the memories that her mother, Suyuan Woo, had left behind. She deals with inner conflicts and struggled to overcome them because she doubted her abilities which were results of her previous failures. After conquering her doubts through memories of her mother’s lessons, June sees her life in a different point of view. As she fought her way through the hindrances
A hero puts other people before themselves and is admired for their qualities, courage, and achievements. A hero obtains knowledge throughout their journey of helping and healing. From Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huckleberry begins his journey with his first dilemma to save a slave, Jim. Huckleberry Finn begins to transform into a courageous hero when he learns the value of a human being.
Phoenix Jackson is a great archetypal hero. Phoenix is full of mysterious and obscure origin, she has a goal, and she is not the same after emerging from the darkness of her descent. Not all heroes are
In A Worn Path by Eudora Welty an elderly African American woman named Phoenix Jackson picks a cold December day to make yet another perilous journey to a near by city to get medicine for her ailing grandson. On the way this old woman faces many obstacles, both natural and man-made. Phoenix draws upon her perseverance and willingness to sacrifice herself to help her throughout her journey, but it is the undying love for her grandson that truly guides and drives her to her final goal. She is described as being a very old woman. “Her eyes were blue with age. Her skin had a pattern all its own of numberless branching wrinkles and as though a whole little tree stood in the middle of her forehead, but a golden color run underneath, and the two knobs of her cheeks were illuminated by a yellow burning under the dark (Welty 386). These all show an indication of her old age. Also, her loss of memory indicates her old age. It was only until Phoenix reached the doctor’s office she remembered why she went on her journey. “My grandson. It was my memory had left me. There I sat and forgot why I made my trip”(Welty 394). Another character in the story was a white man who was a hunter. When Phoenix falls in the ditch, he helps her out of the ditch. Even though the hunter helps Phoenix, he still poses as a threat to her, because it seems he did not want her to finish her journey. This is made apparent when he states, “Why, that’s too far! That’s as far as I walk when I come out myself, and I get something for my trouble”(Welty 391). In addition, like her name, Phoenix seems ageless. When she stops to drink water from the spring she says, “Nobody know who made this well, for it was here when I was born”(Welty 391). When she encounters the hunter and he asks her how old she is she says, “There is no telling, mister, “said, “no telling” (Welty 392). Again her age is emphasized when she goes to the doctor’s office and the nurse ask her why she never went to school. “I never did go to school, I was too old a...
The human need to be relatable is unquenchable. We love to be able to see parts of ourselves in others, and to be able to feel like our idols are not untouchable. The Hero’s Journey format is one that can be found in almost any story, even in real life. Overall, it is the perfect recipe for keeping readers engrossed. Another place the journey has shown up is in Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand and Odyssey by Homer. These two stories—one a biography, the other, an epic poem—are so effective in their storytelling, it is easy to see how authors today continue to use the same method to make stories that grab the readers’ attention. What makes them most alike, however, is the emotions and thoughts they have the power to provoke.
This story is so simple but tells more than just an old African American trip to town for medicine for her grandson. But from a great insight, Phoenix Jackson developed a sense of responsibility toward her grandson, who actually might be the only person in her life. The moral of the story tells about an old African American woman named Phoenix Jackson who was taking a journey from her home into town to seek some medication for her ill grandson. During this journey, the story describes Phoenix Jackson facing struggles and obstacles against her eye sight and old age, as well as nature’s obstacles, thorn bushes and barbed wire. Through these obstacles, Phoenix Jackson is able to depict her poetic view of the world through symbolism.
Readers tend to idolize protagonists of stories. Atticus Finch, Huckleberry Finn, Harry Potter – they are all characters that possess a positive tone from the author. In pieces of writing associated with fantasy, however, it would only be more suitable to call these characters, heroes. Particularly in high fantasy, the hero ventures on an aptly named “hero’s journey.” However, the hero will always discover the “call to adventure” at the beginning of the story. At that point, the protagonist realizes that he or she possesses a unique ability. In high fantasy, that ability generally involves magic. Ursula K. Le Guin’s A Wizard of Earthsea serves as a prime example of this notion. The protagonist, Ged, goes on a journey to quench his thirst for better understanding of wizardry. Another example of fantasy would be L. Frank Baum’s “The Dummy that Lived,” in which a fairy’s mischievous acts lead to a chain of trouble for the victim. Both Le Guin and Baum use magic in high fantasy literature to symbolize the need for maturity in a protagonist, or the creature casting the spell, and therefore promote the importance of responsibility to those who hold great power.
Phoenix Jackson was a very brave woman; there are two examples from the story that displays her courage. “Now and then there was a quivering in the thicket. Old Phoenix said, "Out of my way, all you foxes, owls, beetles, jack rabbits, coons and wild animals!. . . Keep out from under these feet, little bob-whites.... Keep the big wild hogs out of my path. Don 't let none of those come running my direction. I got a long way." Although she was old and fragile, she was not scared of any animal that may have came her way while walking alone
There is Phoenix Jackson she is a grandmother who always travels a long and horrible path that she takes in order to get her grandson medicine for him. Ms. Jackson is an older lady who is traveling in the middle of December “She was a very old and small and she walked slowly in the dark pine shadows”. (Welty) While traveling in the woods Ms. Jackson gets tangled in a bush where here dress gets tangled but after she finally gets herself free she finally gets to the foot of the hill where she rests. Many of the events that happened in this story is not the normal that we have for today. For instance what older woman would go walking into the cold woods in December by herself and keeps walking until she is completely tired. While she is in the woods Ms. Jackson encounters a black dog that trips her and made her fall into a ditch. When the hunter who was with the dog came he helped her up and told her she needs to go back home instead if going into town. When the hunter helped her a nickel fell out of his pocket, when he left she picked it up and put it in her apron, once the hunter came back he pointed a gun to Ms. Jackson face and she stood there and faced him. When asked was she scared “No. sir I seen plenty go off closer by, in my day and for less than what I done” (Welty). This shows that Ms. Jackson is strong and even though she is older she is not the typical elderly person. After traveling
The path ran up a hill. Seems like there is chains about my feet… a bush caught her ...
Jo's journey to the heroic ultimately leads her to a role where her life is spent in giving herself to others, shaping them to be themselves while still maintaining proper place in the grand scheme of things. Through her characterization, a hero is fully developed as one with the strength of character that allows one to be uniquely different while seeking always to help others in the journey of life by placing them ahead of oneself. Jo's heroic act that will not be forgotten after she's dead, only a dream as a young lady, is realized through the lives she touches and the future generations she ultimately affects.
In “A Worn Path,” Jackson character is related to the theme of love, persistence and racial prejudice. Jackson demonstrates love for her grandson as she risk her life through the cold weather to retrieve medicine for her grandson. Her devotion and bravery showed the love that she had for her grandson. In today’s society, you would not see family or friends who care enough for their loved ones to risk their life to help get something that is beneficial for someone else. People who would go great lengths to protect someone they love is rare. Not only did she care for him, but she loved him. Jackson perseverance is shown as she faced the hostile and corrupt world. While keeping warm she must crawl under barbed-wired fences, walk through a maze and protect herself from the wild animals. Not only are these her problems as she takes her occasionally trips to Natchez, she must deal with the pain of age, poverty and racial prejudice, which was a factor during her lifetime. Although she faced perseverance she stayed consistent. The story does not focus on racial issues, but it is implied in the context. Consider the hunter who made racial slurs about blacks going to see Santa Clause or the attendant and shopper calling her granny. Interestingly, the people who she encountered at first were somewhat treating her with kindness. The narrator does not reveal their race, but
One well-known example of “The Hero’s Journey” from popular culture is the Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, by J.K. Rowling. In the novel, Harry Potter, the main character, is the chosen one and “The Hero’s Journey” applies to his life from the moment he is attacked by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named as a baby. Joseph Campbell calls the initial phase of a hero’s development the “Call to Adventure.” The call is the in... ...