A Worn Path By Eudora Welty
Love is a very powerful and compelling feeling. It may lead people to act in ways that they never have before and to move people to overcome and accomplish tasks that would otherwise seem impossible. Sophocles once stated, “One word frees us all of the weight and pain of life: That word is love.” This statement is the underlying factor that motivates the main character in Eudora Welty’s short story, “A Worn Path.” The story portrays an elderly woman’s journey to the city during a frozen day in December to obtain medicine for her grandson’s chronically sore throat. Welty uses strong symbolism throughout the story to depict just how influential love can be. From the beginning, Welty reiterates the fact that Phoenix, the elderly grandmother,
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Just as she exerts enough strength to conquer the hill, her dress gets caught in a thorn bush and she again is setback. This situation exemplifies how poor she is because she tries so hard to break free without tearing her dress. The next challenge is climbing through a barbed-wire fence. For such an old and frail woman, one would think it would be hard to crouch down and crawl on her hands and knees. Ironically, however, Phoenix is only concerned with not tearing her dress on the fence. Once again, this shows the incredible heart and desire she has to complete her journey. Another use of masterful symbolism is when Phoenix encounters a buzzard. She looks up and says, “‘Who you watching?’” (801) as if she is telling the buzzard that she is not even close to death or defeat and will not fall victim to it anytime soon. With the courage to move on and with the huge hill behind her, Phoenix treads on only to stumble upon a swamp filled with alligators. Quietly, she passes unharmed until a black dog surprises her. The tiny old woman hits it with her extremely thin cane but only goes tumbling into a ditch. Once again, any elderly human might give up or not even be able to get out of the ditch. However, Phoenix’s heart is set out to make it to town and back without even thinking twice. She even says to herself, “‘Old woman, that black dog come up out of the weeds to stall you off, and now there he sitting on his fine tail, smiling at you’” (802). A
Just as she exerts enough strength to conquer the hill, her dress gets caught in a thorn bush and she again is setback. This situation exemplifies how poor she is because she tries so hard to break free without tearing her dress. The next challenge is climbing through a barbed-wire fence. For such an old and frail woman, one would think it would be hard to crouch down and crawl on her hands and knees. Ironically, however, Phoenix is only concerned with not tearing her dress on the fence. Once again, this shows the incredible heart and desire she has to complete her journey. Another use of masterful symbolism is when Phoenix encounters a buzzard. She looks up and says, “‘Who you watching?’” (801) as if she is telling the buzzard that she is not even close to death or defeat and will not fall victim to it anytime soon. With the courage to move on and with the huge hill behind her, Phoenix treads on only to stumble upon a swamp filled with alligators. Quietly, she passes unharmed until a black dog surprises her. The tiny old woman hits it with her extremely thin cane but only goes tumbling into a ditch. Once again, any elderly human might give up or not even be able to get out of the ditch. However, Phoenix’s heart is set out to make it to town and back without even thinking twice. She even says to herself, “‘Old woman, that black dog come up out of the weeds to stall you off, and now there he sitting on his fine tail, smiling at you’” (802). A