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Similarities Between The Scarlet Ibis And The Necklace

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“The Scarlet Ibis” and “Necklace” Comparison
Pride is one of the downfalls that all of humanity struggles with. This can be proved by the fact that two stories, in completely different eras, have the same theme. Although Hurst wrote “The Scarlet Ibis” in 1960 and De Maupassant wrote “Necklace” in 1844, the two stories’ interior are very similar. Hurst and De Maupassant established the theme of “pride comes before a fall” enveloping the text in descriptive figurative language and imagery within the short stories.
When James Hurst wrote “The Scarlet Ibis”, the figurative language he provided points towards the theme, which is “pride comes before a fall”. When Doodle’s big brother remembers the tale of Doodle, he has a revelation; “pride is …show more content…

“Necklace” deals with vanity. Madame Loisel, when described as having “no clothes, no jewels, nothing. And these were the only things she loved” (De Maupassant 1), gives the reader insight to a very vain woman, according to the definition of vanity; being “excessive pride in or admiration of one's own appearance or achievements”. In “Necklace”, Madame Loisel’s “fall” comes when she loses the diamond necklace loaned to her by her wealthy friend. The next decade of her life is spent solely on repaying the debt from losing that necklace. Consequently, at the end of those ten years, her appearance is painted as “Her hair was badly done, her skirts were awry, her hands were red” (De Maupassant 7), showing that her drive for vanity has proved unsuccessful, and she has “fallen” in social class. Madame Loisel, who already felt humiliated when she was not able to wear the most expensive clothing, becomes even more humiliated as she approaches her old friend, who doesn’t even recognize her. It is then she finds out the necklace she lost was an imitation, and the last 10 years of her life were wasted upon nothing. The aforesaid evidence proves the theme throughout “Necklace” as being “pride comes before the

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In the short story “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, the selfish narrator set a mission for himself to make his invalid brother become “normal” to fulfill his own personal pride. At one point in the story, the author illustrated a scene in which Doodle and the rest of his family were drawn outside to observe a scarlet ibis as it sat unstable on a branch of a tree, and tumbled to the ground at their feet when it tried to take flight. The scarlet ibis symbolizes Doodle because both Doodle and the bird could be described as vulnerable, weak, and uncoordinated, yet they both still tried to push themselves past their limits. To begin, the precarious way the bird perched itself high up in the tree, represented Doodle because they both share vulnerabilities.

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Throughout the world, more than eighty five percent of people have or are affected by low self esteem. In the short story, “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, it clearly shows the theme that others should not influence all of one’s thoughts and actions. Doodle is a child born with disabilities and his brother, the narrator, supports him and helps him find a place to fit into society and to achieve self-esteem throughout the story. Self-esteem is found negatively and positively in both the narrator and Doodle.

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Thesis Statement Despite the fact that pride is considered an incredible feeling of motivation and happiness, the author James Hurst through his characters, Doodle and the older brother, in his story, “The Scarlet Ibis,” proves ,it is in fact, a masked detrimental and beneficial feeling of selfishness and guilt. II. First Thesis Point- Topic

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Swiss poet Johann Kasper Lavater said, “When pride begins, love ceases.” Pride is a dangerous road, it can either lead to danger, or it can lead to a positive life. For instance, Doodle from ‘The Scarlet Ibis” and this quote are interconnected because his older brother’s pride impacted Doodle both positively and negatively. Doodle always wanted to be around him , so he kept pushing himself which resulted in his tragic demise. Though it benefitted Doodle, it caused him to meet his untimely demise.

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Three months after Doodle is born his family realizes that he isn’t normal. The brother was physically deformed which results in the family’s thought that Doodle was going to die soon. The family builds a coffin which symbolizes the relationship of death with the brother. Brother doesn’t like to be around Doodle because he embarrasses him because of his deformities. This is the first connection to pride in the story.

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This story tugs at heart strings and leaves the question, “Who wrote these unsettling events?” In “The Scarlet Ibis,” there are many highs and lows. A boy struggles with acceptance of his brother. To the boy, his brother is about half of what he should be. The boy believes this problem is his duty to fix.

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The Selfish Narrator In “The Scarlet Ibis,” Hurst demonstrates excessive pride can lead to a selfish personality by the attitude the narrator takes to his brother, Doodle. When Doodle first walks in front of their family, the narrator feels this emotional thought that “the pride, whose slave I am, which speak louder than all other voices, and that Doodle walked only because” of the selfishness that he has inside of him(9). The narrator knew the selfishness in him which motivates him to keep going, even though he knows it isn’t the right choice. The narrator uses the word “slave”, as if he was trapped in selfishness, only listening to his voice “ which speak louder than all other voices”.

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"Doodle!" I screamed above the pounding storm and threw my body to the earth above his. For a long time, it seemed forever, I lay there crying, sheltering my fallen scarlet ibis from the heresy of rain”(Hurst 6).This section shows from the end of Doodle’s life onward Brother has felt guilty. The whole story is Brothers story of the dangers of pride and his personal experience.

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Due to his hurtful actions, inflicted upon Doodle throughout his life, the Narrator feels deep shame for what he has caused. Through the elements of foreshadowing and dialogue, Hurst’s narration reveals the protagonist’s guilt, emphasizing his deep regret over his actions regarding his crippled brother. The Narrator foreshadows the eventual climax of the story through his words regarding his views of pride. He states, “But all of us must have something to be proud of, and Doodle had become mine.

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In the short story “The Necklace” Madame Loisel was a rich women who thought she was poor. She valued having a nice appearance and looking elegant. Madame Loisel borrowed a necklace that she thought was gorgeous, she then lost the necklace but didn’t want to tell the lady she lost it so she went to look for

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Human nature causes people to desire more than what one already has. However, after desiring material items, people realize the foolishness in their greed. In “The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant, Mathilde Loisel, who lives in France during the 1880s, attempts to transform her ordinary life into one of luxury. She attends a reception with her friend Madame Forestier's diamond necklace, but after losing it, she works to buy a new necklace, only to later discover the necklace she lost is fake. Through this experience, Mathilde learns to be content with what she has, and as a result, she realizes the flaws in her character.

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At first the narrator sees Doodle as a crazy frail brother but as we move into the story, we can observe a lot of varying feelings brother has towards Doodle. Brother described Doodle as unbearable, an invalid brother, a brother who was not there at all, so he started

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The protagonist of ‘The Necklace’, Madame Loisel, live a rather steady, ordinary middle-class life in the beginning of the story. However, she views that she is intended for a luxurious life, and, therefore, does not cherish what she has. She takes a step forward to her desires, as she was invited to a ball where all the upper-class woman would be, yet she was unhappy with the fact that she does not even have a stone to put on.

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“The Diamond Necklace” by Maupassant teaches how this clash defines society’s interactions with each other. Understanding the desire of the proletariat class to overcome the oppression caused by those who have control over them, will give more understanding to the relationship between the Loisels. Through the characteristic flaws shown by Matilda, Marxist theory is upheld. With Marx’s idea of how Capitalism works, class conflict, manipulation, and repression are exemplified through the characteristic conflicts that build and destroy the husband and wife’s relationship within the story, while helping them become one with each

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