A Worn Path
Alex Zuniga
Mrs. Sikes
12:30 Tue and Thu
A Sense of Achievement Life is more than just a walk in the park, we are not always that lucky. Throughout one persons life there are always ups and downs, but what really make a person are the actions we take when we encounter obstacles. Life is an obstacle course in which we have to overcome in our lifetimes. In A Worn Path an older woman by the name of Phoenix Jackson takes a long road full of hardships to achieve a goal, which is to get medicine for her grandson. Not only does Phoenix of A Worn Path represent struggle but how we overcome this struggle to achieve a sense of achievement or a goal. Throughout time, people have been going through life’s obstacles and their willingness to pursue their goal has only made them stronger. Phoenix truly represents the sense of achievement all people in life are working for, her perseverance and hard work through these tough times gives us a sense of hope for good things ahead in life. Phoenix’s main reason for leaving her home is to go to town in order to get medicine for her grandson, this is her goal. Her fiery spirit, best representing her name in which correlates with the mythological bird, won’t let her give up on her grandson who she loves and will go through anything to help him. Throughout her walk on the worn path she is met by harsh weather, distance, obstacles, and people. The very first obstacle we notice right of the bat is Phoenix’s age. Not only was she old but was “small and she walked slowly in the dark pine shadows, moving a little from side to side in her steps, with the balanced heaviness and lightness of a pendulum in a grandfather clock.” We all know that as we grow into our older age more and more problems come our way. In this time of our lives we become very brittle and can become helpless at times. Phoenix’s age and physical ailments proves a point of how we move at such a slow pace and may need the support of others as well as a
Mrs. Sikes
12:30 Tue and Thu
A Sense of Achievement Life is more than just a walk in the park, we are not always that lucky. Throughout one persons life there are always ups and downs, but what really make a person are the actions we take when we encounter obstacles. Life is an obstacle course in which we have to overcome in our lifetimes. In A Worn Path an older woman by the name of Phoenix Jackson takes a long road full of hardships to achieve a goal, which is to get medicine for her grandson. Not only does Phoenix of A Worn Path represent struggle but how we overcome this struggle to achieve a sense of achievement or a goal. Throughout time, people have been going through life’s obstacles and their willingness to pursue their goal has only made them stronger. Phoenix truly represents the sense of achievement all people in life are working for, her perseverance and hard work through these tough times gives us a sense of hope for good things ahead in life. Phoenix’s main reason for leaving her home is to go to town in order to get medicine for her grandson, this is her goal. Her fiery spirit, best representing her name in which correlates with the mythological bird, won’t let her give up on her grandson who she loves and will go through anything to help him. Throughout her walk on the worn path she is met by harsh weather, distance, obstacles, and people. The very first obstacle we notice right of the bat is Phoenix’s age. Not only was she old but was “small and she walked slowly in the dark pine shadows, moving a little from side to side in her steps, with the balanced heaviness and lightness of a pendulum in a grandfather clock.” We all know that as we grow into our older age more and more problems come our way. In this time of our lives we become very brittle and can become helpless at times. Phoenix’s age and physical ailments proves a point of how we move at such a slow pace and may need the support of others as well as a
Bibliography: Butterworth, Nancy K. "The Critics." Eudora Welty: A Study of the Short Fiction. Ed. Gordon Weaver, et al. New York: Twayne, 1997: 225-234. Heller, Terry. "A WORN PATH." Masterplots II: Short Story Series. Vol. 6. Ed. Frank N. Magill. Pasadena: Salem, 1986: 2713-2715. Welty, Eudora. "A Worn Path." Perrine 's Literature: Structure, Sound, and Sense. 7th ed. Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace, 1998: 437-443. Eudora Welty, A Worn Path , the Atlantic Monthly, Collection of New York Times Articles, 2001, http://www.theatlantic.com/past/docs/issues/41feb/wornpath.htm , March 29,2013