“A Worn Path” by Eudora Welty Essay
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“A Worn Path” written by Eudora Welty is a short story which is full of symbolism. It is possible to find a variety of symbols concerning most important issues. This is a story about love and devotion, about aging and illnesses, and it is a story about racial discrimination in the USA in the 1930s. Each of the topics highlighted are worth volumes. In this paper, I will focus on racial discrimination in the US society of 1930s.
It is possible to find a variety of symbols which stand for racial discrimination. Some of these symbols are the path itself, the absence of support and the hunter. Admittedly, these are only a few symbols. For instance, the name of the main character is also a suggestive symbol of hope. However, the symbols mentioned above are more comprehensive as I believe each of these symbols represents a facet of African Americans’ life in the USA.
One of the first symbols to be discussed is, of course, the “worn path” (Welty n.p.). The path African Americans had to walk was a really “long way” which was also very difficult (Welty n.p.).
The path was full of dangers and “trials” like thorns which were doing their “appointed work” and “never” wanted “to let folk pass” (Welty n.p.). Of course, the ‘thorny bushes’ were all over African Americans’ way. The word ‘worn’ is also very suggestive. Thousands and millions of African Americans had to make the same journey and endure the same ‘worn’ obstacles.
To make the matters worse, the woman is all alone on the dangerous road, just like African Americans did not have anyone to support them. Thus, the old woman falls and she is unable to stand up, she sees someone and reaches her hands but “nothing reached down and gave her a pull” (Welty n.p.).
Likewise, African Americans had to face lots of constraints and there were few people who were ready to help. In the 1930s, African Americans were discriminated in all spheres of their lives and it was uncommon for a white person to help an African American. Notably, even those attempts made were rather ineffective, as any advance or help was followed by even more horrible conditions. Thus, the fact that the woman has the hallucination stands for the futility of some attempts to help African Americans in the 1930s.
Finally, the conversation between the woman and the hunter is also very symbolic. The man helps the old woman stand up, but, at the same time, he is rather disrespectful and he teases the woman with his gun. In a single phrase, the woman reveals the sufferings of slaves, “I seen plenty go off closer by, in my day, and for less than what I done” (Welty n.p.).
The slaves were treated like undeserving creatures and were punished even without a reason. Unfortunately, little changed in the 1930s and African Americans were tortured and humiliated. The entire conversation is the symbolic representation of the roles available for whites and African Americans in 1930s. The whites were still ‘patronizing’ African Americans who were regarded as inferior.
On balance, it is possible to state that the short story is a symbolic representation of the life of African Americans in the 1930s. The old woman’s path stands for the long journey African Americans had to endure to have the life they had in the 1930s. Such symbols as the path, the woman’s hallucinations and the conversation between the man and the old woman reveal the inequality in the USA in the 1930s.
Works Cited
Welty, Eudora. A Worn Path . 2001. Web.
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A Worn Path
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Essay Topics
Phoenix Jackson is named after a mythical bird, and birds make brief appearances at key points in the story. Using examples from the text, write an essay describing the significance of and potential symbolism of birds in “A Worn Path.”
Readers often wonder if Phoenix’s grandson is actually alive. Does your interpretation of the story change if he is alive or dead? If so, how? If not, why? Rely on a close reading of the text and key passages to support your essay.
The forest in “A Worn Path” is almost a character unto itself. Write an essay that examines the significance of the story’s setting . How does Welty imbue the woods with life and character? Why does she choose this landscape in particular?
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| Theme Analysis |
Phoenix might at times, due to age, forget the object of her mission, but this only underscores the deep love that motivates her to complete it. The reader is always aware of this underlying aspect of her journey, but as the story progresses and Phoenix steals the nickel from the hunter and then asks for another nickel from the hospital attendant , the story seems to complicate Phoenix’s love for her grandson with a sense that Phoenix is also out for a kind of personal gain. When it is revealed that Phoenix risked her life for the hunter’s nickel and her dignity for the nickel at the hospital all in order to have the money to buy her grandson a gift that will give him a sense of the wonders of the world, those complications die away and the force of her love for her grandson surges through the story. Phoenix’s love is not just one of loyalty or obligation—she endures the journey not just to keep her grandson alive and comfortable. Her love is more profound—she endures the journey to give her grandson a sense of what’s possible in the world, to give him hope. Just as a phoenix rises from its own ashes, Phoenix’s love offers her descendants a tiny step up, but also everything she can offer, in helping them rise up in the world.
Love ThemeTracker
Love Quotes in A Worn Path
“Now comes the trial.”
“Glad this not the season for bulls…and the good Lord made his snakes to curl up and sleep in the winter.”
Phoenix heard the dogs fighting, and heard the man running and throwing sticks. She even heard a gunshot. But she was slowly bending forward by that time, further and further forward, the lids stretched down over her eyes, as if she were doing this in her sleep. Her chin was lowered almost to her knees. The yellow palm of her hand came out from the fold of her apron. Her fingers slid down and along the ground under the piece of money with the grace and care they would have in lifting an egg from under a setting hen. Then she slowly straightened up, she stood erect, and the nickel was in her apron pocket. A bird flew by. Her lips moved. "God watching me the whole time. I come to stealing."
“We is the only two left in the world. He suffer and it don’t seem to put him back at all…He going to last…I could tell him from all the others in creation.”
“This is what come to me to do…I going to the store and buy my child a little windmill they sells, made out of paper. He going to find it hard to believe there such a thing in the world.”
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A Worn Path
by Eudora Welty
A worn path symbols, allegory and motifs, symbol: phoenix.
The name of the story’s protagonist references the mythological bird that was reborn from its ashes. From the crucible of fire, the phoenix was reborn to fly again, thus the character of Phoenix becomes a symbol of the circular nature of time and the spirit of renewal and rebirth.
Symbol: The Grandson
Amidst all the darkness and prejudice and ambiguity at play in the narrative of old woman’s walk across the worn path is one symbol of pure innocence. The grandson for whom Phoenix sets out upon the hard and difficult journey is representative of unspoiled light; he is the epitome of innocence set hard upon by the ravages of a world devoted to corrupting that purity. He is a helpless victim dependent upon his grandmother’s ability to navigate through the darkness in order to provide him safety and security.
Symbol: The Scarecrow
When Phoenix sees the scarecrow, it is introduced via her thought “At first, she took it for a man.” In the South, that phrase carries a rich implicit meaning. The scarecrow is tall, black and skinny and combined with the idea of mistaking it for a man, the symbolic intention is more than evident. The scarecrow is every black man lynched, run out of town, or otherwise destroyed by a white society incapable of seeing him as a man like themselves. The black man is, ironically, the "ghost" Phoenix initially sees the scarecrow as.
Symbol: Chains
When Phoenix says it seems as if there are chains on her feet as the path moves uphill, such chains symbolize slavery, the condition most African Americans (perhaps even Phoenix herself) were in during the antebellum period. They can also symbolize the post-slavery period in which Phoenix lives—a period characterized by Jim Crow laws, through which the white South desperately attempted to retain its racial hierarchy by restricting the privileges, liberties, and humanity of African Americans.
A Worn Path Questions and Answers
The Question and Answer section for A Worn Path is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.
Phoenix is old; she has trouble with mobility and vision. Phoenix must face many obstacles on the worn path on the way to town. She has trouble seeing a scarecrow, she thinks it might be a ghost, and she doesn't see a black dog approach her.
How is the name of the central character significant in the narrative?
The phoenix is an immortal bird associated with Greek mythology that cyclically regenerates or is otherwise born again. The central character demonstrates this by repeating an arduous journey.
Who did the hunter think Phoenix was going to town to see?
During her journey, Phoenix has an altercation with a dog that comes after her. She hits the dog wih her cane, but falls over in turn. At this point, a white man—a hunter—helps her from the spill she took into the ditch. He starts out nicely by...
Study Guide for A Worn Path
A Worn Path study guide contains a biography of Eudora Welty, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.
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Essays for A Worn Path
A Worn Path essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of A Worn Path by Eudora Welty.
- Inspiration Through Storytelling: Eudora Welty's "A Worn Path"
- Symbolism in "A Worn Path"
Wikipedia Entries for A Worn Path
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IMAGES
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In its depiction of the journey of an impoverished black woman in Mississippi, "A Worn Path" explores the realities of race and class in the South at a time when slavery was still within living memory. The depiction of race in the story is not simplistic. Rather, through Phoenix's experiences with other people, Welty shows the complicated ...
A Worn Path study guide contains a biography of Eudora Welty, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Best summary PDF, themes, and quotes. More books than SparkNotes.
Analysis. In December a very old black woman walks slowly through a pine forest. Her name is Phoenix Jackson. She wears a red rag tied around her head, her shoes are unlaced, and her face has "numberless branching wrinkles". Old and frail, she carries a cane, which she switches at animals she thinks she hears moving in the brush.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) 'A Worn Path' is a short story by the American writer Eudora Welty (1909-2001), first published in the Southern Review in 1937 and reprinted in Welty's 1941 collection A Curtain of Green and Other Stories.. 'A Worn Path' details the journey an elderly black woman makes into town one Christmas time, in order to get some medicine for her ...
Discussion of themes and motifs in Eudora Welty's A Worn Path. eNotes critical analyses help you gain a deeper understanding of A Worn Path so you can excel on your essay or test.
A Worn Path study guide contains a biography of Eudora Welty, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Best summary PDF, themes, and quotes. More books than SparkNotes.
On an early December morning, an old African-American woman, Phoenix Jackson, walks slowly through the forest. Her shoelaces are untied, and she taps the ground with a cane. She calls out to the animals to stay out of her way and hits the bushes with her cane. She follows the path up a hill and down the other side.
Her body and force of habit sustain her purpose and carry her forward, revealing the power of love and devotion as the primary theme of "A Worn Path.". The story shows that love can be tough and enduring. Phoenix embodies these qualities in the way she interacts with the environment and other people. Later in the story readers learn that ...
A Worn Path Study Guide. The winner of second prize in the prestigious O. Henry Awards for the year 1941 was a short story written by a relative newcomer to the world of American fiction, a woman straight out of William Faulkner's backyard. That woman was Eudora Welty and her story was " A Worn Path .".
Eudora Welty explores the theme of immortality in a number of ways in the short story, including the cycles of nature, imagery, and the main character's name. As Phoenix walks down the path, she is surrounded by nature, most of it in its dormant state because it is the middle of winter. The trees are black, seemingly dead, and the snake stays ...
Analysis. Last Updated September 6, 2023. "A Worn Path" was first published in the Atlantic magazine in February 1941. It is set in Mississippi in the unspecified recent past, which probably ...
Published: Mar 20, 2024. Eudora Welty's short story "A Worn Path" is a work rich in symbolism, offering readers a thought-provoking exploration of the human experience. The story follows an elderly African American woman named Phoenix Jackson as she embarks on a journey through the woods to obtain medicine for her grandson.
Themes and Colors. LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in A Worn Path, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. In its depiction of the journey of an impoverished black woman in Mississippi, "A Worn Path" explores the realities of race and class in the South at a time when slavery was still within living memory.
In this paper, I will focus on racial discrimination in the US society of 1930s. Get a custom essay on "A Worn Path" by Eudora Welty. It is possible to find a variety of symbols which stand for racial discrimination. Some of these symbols are the path itself, the absence of support and the hunter. Admittedly, these are only a few symbols.
Essay Topics. 1. Phoenix Jackson is named after a mythical bird, and birds make brief appearances at key points in the story. Using examples from the text, write an essay describing the significance of and potential symbolism of birds in "A Worn Path.". 2. Readers often wonder if Phoenix's grandson is actually alive.
Along with the rebirth of the determination of the grandmother for her grandson's well-being, there is also the idea of Endurance in the Resurrection theme of Eudora Welty's "A Worn Path."Phoenix ...
A Worn Path study guide contains a biography of Eudora Welty, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Best summary PDF, themes, and quotes. More books than SparkNotes.
Developing a thesis statement for a short story like "A Worn Path" can be tricky because it is always tempting to merely retell the tale rather than make a supportable claim about it.Indeed, a ...
Below you will find the important quotes in A Worn Path related to the theme of Love. A Worn Path Quotes. "Now comes the trial.". Phoenix Jackson (speaker) Related Themes: Page Number and Citation: 143 this Quote. Explanation and Analysis: Unlock explanations and citation info for this and every other A Worn Path quote.
The Theme of "A Worn Path" Charlotte Schroeder Ashford University 03/04/2013 ENG 125 Instructor Abby Forster In the short story "A Worn Path", the author Eudora Welty, created a strong theme of undying love with an old woman and her grandson. ... PhDessay is an educational resource where over 1,000,000 free essays are collected ...
A Worn Path study guide contains a biography of Eudora Welty, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Best summary PDF, themes, and quotes. More books than SparkNotes.