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What Is The Brother's Relationship In The Scarlet Ibis

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In James Hurst’s short story “The Scarlet Ibis”, Hurst describes the relationship between Doodle, an invalid boy, and his brother. Throughout this story, Hurst shows the brother’s selfishness for his own future. Many would say that this selfishness is the reason the narrator left Doodle behind in the woods on that rainy evening, ending in his brother’s fatality, but was the narrator to blame in this incident? The simple answer to this question is yes, but an explanation is needed. Especially towards the end of the story, the narrator seems to harbor an unjust grudge against his little brother, so the theory that the narrator was the cause of death is not that far off. In the short story, the brother explains his frustrations with having a brother who cannot even do something as simple as walking by the age of 5 years old. This causes the narrator to teach his brother many things out of what seems to be spite. Towards the beginning of the story, it is evident that the narrator wishes to have a better relationship with his brother, but he simply cannot because his brother might not even be “all there”. However, as the story progresses the narrator shows a type of loathing towards his brother because he cannot do the things the narrator wishes he could do. The narrator even expresses his worries about this by explaining, “They did not know that I did it for myself; that pride, whose slave I was, spoke to …show more content…

After begrudgingly attempting to teach his brother to climb, swim, and row a boat with no success, the narrator’s bitterness began to boil over. His final straw was having his heels stepped on by his brother while walking through the woods causing him to run away from his brother in the pouring rain, ignoring his brother’s pleas for help. These events are evidence enough to point the blame towards the narrator for his brother’s

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