Essay Sample on A Worn Path: Phoenix's Journey to Overcome Life's Challenges

Introduction

Life is full of vagaries, unknown obstacles, and ups and downs with experiences that are not easy to forget. In A Worn Path, Eudora Welty uses symbolism to capture and show the affliction and joy of life (Welty, 2002). It's a bridge used in revealing the internal battles to the reader purposely to accord A Worn Path a confidential meaning with more profound revelations that exceeds just an older adult strolling down the woods (Welty, 2002). Phoenix, the main protagonist in this book, is an older woman with a wrinkled face and ragged clothes, indicating that her life has been full of misery and experiences that she would never forget (Parkway, 2015). Symbolism is evident in A Worn Path as characters such as the thorn bush depicting obstacles and calamities people face in their lives, young white man with his dog symbolizing racism, and the paper windmill representing love and selflessness.

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The first symbol that appears in this story the thorn bush. Miss Jackson gets caught I the thorny bush accidentally as she was walking, and instead of surrendering to the pain and hold back, she keeps on pushing through fearlessly. She meets people on her way, with the owner of the dog, who is a young white man being the most significant (Welty, 2002). The nature of their dialogue depicts a different picture like the one she uses to communicate with the people she meets in urban her town as it gives a hint on how her life has been and how she grew up. The paper windmill is also acting as a symbol, although it might be a minor symbol, it encompasses the whole story using simplistic symbolism to show how selfless her life has been. In A Worn Path, Wetly passes his message by using a paper windmill, a thorny bush and, a dog whose owner is a young man of white origin to bring the whole idea together to give a meaning in life that, all sorts of experience we undergo in life shapes our lives in different ways no matter how minor or significant they are.

While she was on her way to town, Phoenix's dress is caught by thorns on a bush. She proceeds to take her time to untangle the thorns and explains to her thoughts that the thorns were made to do exactly what they were doing to her (Welty, 2002). These thorns symbolize the pain and agony she has experienced in her whole life, or whatever all of us have experienced at specific points in life. When she gives affirmation that the thorns are doing what they were made to do, it helps the reader with some knowledge and understanding that even most inconvenient things are meant to take place as they do for different reasons. 'Old eye thought you was a pretty little green bush,' says Jackson as she sits on the ground to untangle her skirt from the thorn bush (Welty, 2002). It gives a reader signals that she indeed expected a smooth experience, but only the anticipated took place. She has to conquer the thorn bush to continue with her journey or else, and she will be stuck forever (Glanc, 2014). The thorn appears to be a small part in the story, yet it plays a significant role in her journey because it gives a deeper meaning that not every obstacle is more trouble than they appear to be or, not every hindrance is a calamity at first.

The identity of the protagonist in the story refers to the mythological bird that originated from its ashes. Phoenix, therefore, symbolizes the spirit of renewal and rebirth, it never dies a natural death. The grandson is a symbol of innocence that is purely illustrated by Phoenix, whose tiresome journey represents brilliant light that cannot be spoiled and is expected to light brighter when its time comes (Glanc, 2014). The scarecrow represents a black man who is feared by their white counterparts, which refers to them as 'ghosts' ironically (Wetly, n. d). She also applies to the fatigue she feels on her feet as 'chains' as she was on her way up the hill, this symbolized slavery experience by the African-Americans during their slavery period. It seems she has not forgotten those days, and according to her age, she might have experienced how they used to be treated.

During her journey, the young hunter and his dog come on her way, and we should take a note on his race, as mentioned by Welty. It points out the several conversations they had together as the hunter was having a dialogue with Phoenix and how it symbolized racism (Wetly, n. d). He changes the tone of the conversation when he realizes miss Jackson's race and even assures her that she would be safe if she stays at home and also thinks that she is crazy because her dress was ragged and looked like a beggar to him, he even wishes to give her a dime if he had (Welty, 2002). Miss Jackson assures the young man that she has lived with cruelty and violence during her lifetime as a confirmation that the symbol is linking back historical afflictions in the story concerning racial issues. Considering her age, there is a sign that she lived in the ancient days and has a lot of experience.

In A Worn Path, the writer uses the paper windmill as the least symbol to represent the life of Phoenix Jackson. She buys it with two nickels she had as her last money for her grandson, who she was traveling for. The paper windmill stands for pure generosity and selflessness that one should be given during their existence in life (Welty, 2002). She sacrificed her journey to the town to buy the toy windmill for her little grandson with her last coins. This noble act shows her she cares for her grandson's happiness than the tiresome nature of the journey considering her age and condition. 'I go to the store and buy my child a little windmill they sell, made out of paper. He was going to find it hard to believe there such a thing in the world (Parkway, 2015). I'll march myself back where he was waiting, holding it straight up in this hand', she says (Welty, 2002). acts as a proof of how she cares and feels indebted to ways to please her grandson and to ensure that the little guy is more entertained than her as she takes the long journey from home. Her grandson thinks that she has gone to retrieve some medicines; surprisingly, she will bring him a gift when she returns.

Throughout the short story of A Worn Path, symbolism is vivid in the whole set up with the majority handling sensitive issues like race, happiness, and obstacles people face in their lifetimes. Hidden and unhidden tragedies in life are symbolized by the thorn bush, which shows us the kind of difficulties and obstacles that hinders our smooth continuous way of life as we would wish it to be. She communicates with the bush on how she was not able to see the thorns, which makes them an obstacle (Wetly, n. d). This indicates that some problems come to our lives without our knowledge and interferes with our daily operations, not because we are careless but because we can't predict what will happen the next moment. The white hunter with a dog symbolizes the racial description issues she underwent during her entire noble life. Jackson has clear memories of intense rivalry in her neighborhood, steered by color on the face (Welty, 2002). At her ager, she has seen more than the hunter on impacts of racism, the young hunter fearful of what might become of her, if she continues with her journey, advises Jackson to return home for the sake of her safety.

The paper windmill symbolizes what Jackson can overcome in life for the sake of love and happiness. All the obstacles are less substantial when approached with pure love and thirst for happiness. Joy brings love, and happiness depends on the humility of love. Aiming at the pleasure that the grandson would feel after realizing that she would come back with the paper windmill and not medicine would bring him happiness as the grandmother expects. It is vivid that she wants only happiness for her grandson, and this shows the unconditional love she has for the little boy (Welty, 2002). The sacrifice she makes to risk her life by walking through the woods alone to and from the town is exceptional. The ultimate happiness she would hive her grandson makes the story A Worn Path worth adventuring.

These scenarios symbolically show us the way life is overwhelmed with opportunities and experiences that distinguish us. Unlike Jackson, some people experience little or fewer calamities than others, although nobody escapes the obstacles in one way or the other during their lifetime. Phoenix's life entailed ragged looks as described in the book to symbolize the tribulations and trials in life. Phoenix is a unique name based on the story since it shows reborn from the ashes, this also means that her generation will live on and on without as her spirit lives on (Welty, 2002). The scarecrow inflicts fear in people, especially whites since they are strong-willed and might overtake them at one point. Therefore, they have to be killed for the white man's safety.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the writer has used precise shreds of evidence that depict the element of symbolism which has been manifested in different scenarios. For instance, the thorn bush, the young white man and the dog, and the toy windmill have their deeper meanings in the real world (Welty, 2002). The story is well narrated to meet the standards of symbolism, which is also the most used element in the book. The clarity of his message is well articulated and shielded by the use of metaphor.

References

Glanc, J. (2014). Literary Analysis Essay. A Worn Path. Retrieved March 14, 2020, from https://www.academia.edu/9624494/A_Worn_Path

Parkway, N. (2015). National Park Service. A Worn Path. Retrieved March 14, 2020, from https://www.nps.gov/teachers/classrooms/a-worn-path.htm

Welty, E. (2002). A Worn Path. notes. The Gale Group, Inc. https://pljulianhs.net/ourpages/auto/2007/3/11/1173643688271/A_Worn_Path_notes.pdf

Welty, E. (n. d). The Modern Short Story: A Worn Path. Unit 5: The Harlem Renaissance and Modernism. PP. 1048-1063. Smithsonian American Art Museum. https://www.academia.edu/9624494/A_Worn_Path