A Worn Path - A Journey of Determination, Devotion, and Love

A Worn Path is an allegory for Phoenix Jacksons life, as well as for the experiences of many African Americans. Phoenixs path is worn not only because she herself has had to travel it so many times, but because it symbolizes the path traveled by poor and oppressed people everywhere. The characterization of Phoenix begins with her name. In mythology, the phoenix is a bird that symbolizes immortality, eternally rising above death; defeating it by resuming a new life. This is an appropriate name for the character in this short story, for she too has a strength and decorum about her that enables her to arise from the difficulties of life imposed on her by racism, in order to obtain care for her grandson. Achieving this goal satisfies her need to love and care for her grandson, and in so doing, also transmits this love and care to a new generation, enabling it to rise above racism as well. In this way, she carries two important themes of the story: first, the ugliness of racism that tries to defeat this strong woman, secondly, the power of love seen in her determination to do everything she can to obtain help for her grandson. A Worn Path communicates a theme to humankind about rising up to meet lifes challenges; in fact, the connections between the literary elements of setting to plot and character to symbolism contribute to the storys overall theme of love, and rising up through determination. In A Worn Path the setting is an integral part of the plot structure due to the main characters age and poverty, as well as the social limitations of the time period. The social setting in A Worn Path helps remind the reader of the theme. The author uses a social setting in which man and woman, black and white, young and old often conflict. Furthermore, the physical setting is rural Mississippi 1940s, where Phoenix Jackson rises early one cold December morning to start her journey to the town of Natchez, Mississippi (at a time and place

where these types of conflicts seemed natural, thus adding to the artistic unity of the story) to obtain medicine for her grandson. Historically, Mississippi is known for its racial turmoil to a much larger degree than other southern states. In a conflict of person versus person where man and woman, black and white, and young and old conflict, the protagonist, old Mrs. Jackson, bravely faces a young white man who points a hunting rifle at her. Determined to continue her journey, Phoenix resolves this conflict saying, I bound to go to town, mister. The hunter remarks on her courage saying, You must be a hundred years old, and scared of nothing. Phoenix, who says of herself, I the oldest people I ever know, '' never stops until she reaches her goal, which shows that youthful determination, is a powerful force that can bestow strength and courage to people when they need it. As the plot develops, more illustrations of the importance of determination are seen. One illustration of this is shown in a conflict of person versus nature, when the path becomes more difficult because it runs uphill. Courageously fighting the fatigue that is like chains about her feet, Phoenix resolves this conflict through sheer determination: she puts one foot in front of the other until she reaches the top of the hill. Persevering, Phoenix bravely resolves her conflicts with a thorny bush, a running creek, and a barbed-wire fence by allowing her hands and feet to do the work of her failing eyes. In each conflict Phoenix resolves the case by trusting her feet to find the way, never giving up, proving that determination can truly lend people strength and courage. Throughout the story, the author uses the limited omniscient point of view to emphasize the theme. The reader understands Phoenixs thoughts because she thinks aloud; she talks to herself. An example of Phoenix thinking aloud is illustrated when she prepares to cross a creek and says, Now comes the trial. Safely on the other side, she congratulates herself saying, I
2

wasn't as old as I thought. If the objective point of view had been used the reader would have felt less sympathetic towards Phoenixs character, and had the story had been narrated from a first person point of view, this combined with Phoenixs set old ways would make her seem like an erratic narrator. Ms. Welty also avoids the omniscient point of view, which might obscure the theme in a clamor of voices, thoughts, and judgments from characters such as the hunter, the attendant, and the nurse. Likewise, to maintain readability, the limited omniscient point of view is the best for preserving the fable-like simplicity that makes this story so enjoyable. Clearly, the thoughts and judgments of other characters are interesting, but they do not help to show the link between determination, strength, courage, and love. The most obvious symbol in the story is Phoenixs name and her comparison to the mythological phoenix, a mythical bird that lived in the desert, and had a 500 to 1000 year lifecycle, that would set itself on fire, only to rise again from its own ashes, and is a popular symbol for immortality. Dressed in vivid colors, Phoenixs resilience is underscored by her comparison with a bird that rises from the ashes. Certainly, age plays a significant part in the story as Phoenix tells the scarecrow, My senses is gone. I too old. I the oldest people I ever know. When the hunter asks her how old she is, she replies, There is no telling, mister. However, although the story does not state Phoenixs age, she has to be very old. Yet, like the phoenix, she raises to makes periodic trips to Natchez to get medicine for her grandson. The connection between age is made each time the author refers to Phoenix as Old Phoenix, Old Woman, or simply Old. Both Phoenixes have great endurance and longevity, but in this story it is determination and love, rather than mythology that is the source of this particular strength. Additionally, the nickel as a symbol in The Worn Path, points out a comparison between rich and poor. This is a poor woman in the strongest sense of the word, and when a nickel falls from the pocket of the hunter, she slyly picks it up and keeps it. Despite her guilt at
3

having done so, one can understand Phoenixs selfishness and inner conflict when she says, God watching me the whole time. I come to stealing. Phoenix understands that stealing is wrong, but her poverty is overwhelming, fueling her determination to provide for her grandson. In comparison, this is a poor woman who, despite every possible physical and emotional obstacle, is as unselfish as one can possibly be. The nickel serves as a reminder of love and determination, as its not for her that she takes and keeps the coin. Allowing Phoenix to be the only complete character in the story helps to reaffirm the theme. Given that the reader has by now, become well acquainted with Phoenix through her thoughts, understanding her determination becomes easier; where despite self-conflict, her guilt, and her moral objections to stealing, Phoenix uses the nickel to buy a paper windmill, a Christmas gift for her grandson. Consistent development of Phoenixs character throughout the story makes her round and believable. Her roundness forms a sharp contrast when it meets the flatness of the characters of the hunter, the attendant, and the nurse. Because these flat characters are undeveloped, they are too shallow to know anything of the depth of Phoenixs determination, and love for her grandson. Instead, they see only an obstinate old woman, whereas the reader sees determination wearing down the path to reach a significant goal. Phoenix Jackson's feeble mind and body was no match to the overwhelming devotion she felt toward her grandson, which she proved on several occasions throughout the story. Her sheer determination was inexplicable; her courage to press on without concern of what the path brought was motivating. She was a selfless woman whose spirit could not be broken. We can all identify somewhat with Phoenix through our own determination. Phoenixs character and the use of symbols helped the narrator reinforce the theme of the story. For example, a journey represents ones path through life; Phoenixs brave and compassionate quest, her staying power and resilience, are important themes of A Worn Path. The symbol of journey reinforces and is
4

reinforced through the idea of perseverance and loving responsibility. The combined effects of her old age, her poor vision, and her poetic view of the world heighten the symbolism of the narrative. Symbolism links a characteristic to an object, which occurs throughout the entirety of a story. However, this was not the case in A Worn Path. The literary elements of symbols and character, affected the narrative theme, because it manipulated the structure, mainly the exposition of the story, thus limiting the readers knowledge about the situations and the ideas in the story. A Worn Path used exposition to the effect of pausing the understanding of the symbol until the end of Phoenixs journey.

References: R. Wayne Clugston. Journey Into Literature (https://content.ashford.edu) (Eudora Welty, 1941) A Worn Path Phoenix Mythology (http://en.wikipedia.org)