The Scarlet Ibis Color Analysis

In “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, the color red symbolizes uncertainty of how life will play out. It was neither autumn nor summer, the time in which death was prominent. The garden was stained brown, and the bleeding tree arose from the ground, intimidating the atmosphere. The young boy recalled his dear little brother, Doodle they called him. “He seemed all head, with a tiny body which was red and shriveled like an old man's....Daddy had Mr. Heath, the carpenter, build a little mahogany coffin for him. But he didn't die, and when he was three months old, Mama and Daddy decided they might as well name him”(1 Hurst). Human do not like to be left in the dark, infact they are so scared from it they often lose control of what is actually going on. They feel as though everything must

‘Why?’ he asked. I hadn't expected such an answer. ‘So I won't have to haul you around all the time.’ ‘I can't walk, Brother,’ he said.”(2-3 Hurst) Doodle was taught since he could remember that he could not do certain things, and was unfit to play with his older brother. This type of treatment led to him doubting his capabilities, and if it was not for his brother who selfishly taught him to walk, he would have never been able to stand on his own feet. They feared that he was incapable of living a normal life, however they were the ones that were stopping him from reaching his full potential. “The Scarlet Ibis’ By James Hurst, the color red symbolizes that we cannot predict the future, and therefore are intimidated by it. Humans try to organize the past, Improve their daily lives, and try to minimize the chaos surrounding them. However there is one thing that they cannot control, and that is the future. What they fear the most is not the monster under their beds, it's the dark shielding that monster. Humans must find a way to cope with their fickle nature, and embrace the flexibility the world has given