Similarities Between The Scarlet Ibis And What's Eating Gilbert Grape

Being disabled makes you different, but it shouldn't cause others to treat you differently. The novel "The Scarlet Ibis" by James Hurst and the film What's Eating Gilbert Grape are good examples of disabled people being treated differently because of their disabilities. "The Scarlet Ibis" is about a physically disabled boy narmed Doodle who is on the journey of overcoming his disabilities which were going to kill him at a young age. The film What's Eating Gilbert Grape follows the life of Gilbert Grape, who has a mentally retarded younger brother and a severely obese mother. Both the novel and the film show a universal truth of how people who have disabilities are treated differently by people who don't have disabilities because those with

The elements of tone, characterization, and symbolism similarly develop the theme that reflects a universal truth in both "The Scarlet Ibis" and What's Eating Gilbert Grape. The tone in both "The Scarlet Ibis" and What's Eating Gilbert Grape similarly develop the theme. In the novel, the oldest brother thinks taking his younger, disabled brother, Doodle with him when he goes places is too much work. "To discourage his coming with me, I'd run with him across the ends of cotton rows and careen him around corners on two wheels" (Hurst 259). Through the older brother's tone when he says this, we can tell that Doodle's lack of the ability to walk and do activities other kids his age can do makes his brother angry. This frustration causes the older brother to do things to Doodle he wouldn't otherwise do. The older brother is embarrassed and frustrated with Doodle when Doodle is unable to walk when Kindergarten was to start. "When Doodle was five