The story of Eudora Welty introduces the exemplar of a truly selfless woman who is ready to sacrifice herself for the sake of the ones she loves. Thus, every time when she goes to town for the remedy for his little grandson, Phoenix Jackson virtually burns herself like the magical bird she was named after, and every time when she gets the remedy she hurries back to her grandson who is waiting for her (Welty, 1991). Furthermore, Phoenix simply cannot let herself die, since she is the only close person to that little boy. With that, until she is able to move, she will always search for the remedy walking this worn path, and will always return to her grandson by the same path. Depicting the selfless character of Phoenix, Eudora Welty creates a direct association with the myth about a dying and rebirthing Phoenix bird, thus actualizing the focus of the myth, which is rebirth. Every time when she goes to town for the medicine, the heroine of the story "dies", just like the magic Phoenix. This signifies that her journey is long and dangerous, and her age does not allow her to walk such distances. However, once she reaches her goal and gets the medicine, she seems to be rebirthing anew and her feet carry her home themselves. Hence, her path does not seem so difficult as it appeared before, and Phoenix stops thinking about death, and begins to bear the thoughts about life in her mind (Welty, 1991). It should be also noted that the story actualizes such mythological element of the Phoenix as red color. That is, the mane of Phoenix stems from the Greek word that signifies red and fiery color in connection with the legend about the rebirth of the bird from the cleansing flame. Likewise, Phoenix Jackson bears a red rag on her head from which can be seen still black curls with a copper tint.
Indeed, the journey described by Eudora Welty appears a real challenge even for young and strong people. The depicted crossing over the river along a log, climbing to the top of a mountain, passage under a barbwire, and many other deeds taken by Phoenix deserve a great amount of respect (Welty, 1991). What it more, Welty endowed her heroine with willpower, which is further reinforced by her brilliant sense of humor. In aggregate, these key qualities of the heroine make her courageous enough to complete this perilous journey. What is quite unusual for a woman of her age, Phoenix appears a very brave character throughout the entire narration. With so many challenges awaiting her in the woods Phoenix does not even think of ceasing her journey and returning home, mainly because she is strongly connected with her little grandson.
What is more, Phoenix Jackson appears very persistent during the whole story, which is strengthened by the emphasized advanced age of the heroine. As stated by Welty, Phoenix is quite an old woman, with every single thing in her description alluding to her fragility . However, Phoenix even seems to disregard her age and does not stops before anything that might prevent her from retrieving the remedy for her grandson (Welty, 1991). On her dangerous journey, Phoenix sends away every wild animal she encounters, and even heavy logs present no difficulty for her when she lifts them with her cane. Even her destiny represented by age make attempts to prevent her from completing her mission, and all these factors would be enough for many people to surrender and back down, but Phoenix's persistence and dedication prevails every problem imposed by this difficult trip (Welty, 1991).
The path to town is long and difficult, which means that Phoenix will have to overcome many dangers. However, the path she always chooses has been familiar to her for quite a long time, and her feet bring her to hospital themselves (Welty, 1991). However, Phoenix is also a human, just like the one she attempts to save, and eventually her age prevails. For some time, Phoenix sits silently and fixedly, she does not understand what is happening, where she is and how she found herself in that place when finally the flame of memory breaks out in her mind. The thoughts about her little boy endow Phoenix with fresh powers and do not let her forget why she has made such a difficult trip. Moreover, when she gets the medicine, the old woman also decides to spend her last money to buy a Christmas present to her grandson (Welty, 1991). All in all, the image of Phoenix is the true representation of a dignified person who decides to devote her life for the sake of another person.
Furthermore, the image of Phoenix is well established in terms of the responsibility of her character. The old woman is quite aware of the danger that awaits her on her journey to town. At the same time, Phoenix understands that she may by the last hope for her grandson, and the risk of her failure may result in the death of both of them. Thus, the path taken by Phoenix appears the only way to save the life of her boy, whereupon she does not hesitates and vigorously hits the road (Welty, 1991). Throughout her journey, Phoenix always remembers the suffering of her grandson, recalls his pain and his inability to swallow. Phoenix is afraid that the boy will not be able to breathe, and she is ready to devote the rest of her life to other trips for the search of the medicine, bearing the hope for the boy to finally recover.
The story narrated in A Worn Path depicts the life of an old Negro woman who tries to reach town through the dangerous woods with the only goal of saving her little grandson. On her way, the woman encounters many obstacles, such as a moat, a barbwire, a thorn bush, a hunter, dogs, and so on. Overcoming multiple difficulties, she seeks a remedy for her grandson who swallowed lye several years ago. With that, Phoenix's love to her grandson is so strong that, despite her advanced age, she goes on a dangerous journey on the eve of every Christmas (Welty, 1991). In point of fact, A Worn Path is a story about eternal love and devotion that leads us to our goals. Indeed, love plays a major role throughout the narration. Furthermore, Phoenix's devotion to her mission to save the life of her little grandson is unbounded, and these two feelings represent the driving force that leads her to the completion of this perilous mission. The story depicts the true meaning of devotion, introducing the readiness to sacrifice everything only to save the life of another person.
Despite the vivid risk and the peril of death, Phoenix Jackson manages not only to maintain control over herself, but also to preserve a sense of humor. For instance, when takes a scarecrow for a ghost, she laughs at herself. On the contrary, the old woman challenges her old age, though she admits that her senses start to let her down. Nonetheless, her sense of humor always remains with her, and she even suggests the scarecrow to dance with her (Welty, 1991). During this hazardous mission, her sense of humor appears the only companion and friend of Phoenix, with the help of which she fights the evil back and decently continues her journey. What is more, Phoenix has a brilliant sense of sarcasm which is revealed during the talk with the hunger (Welty, 1991). Thus, when the hunter asked the old woman what she was doing, she bitingly responded with sarcasm, claiming to be lying on her back and awaiting to be annoyed by something. On the whole, the senses of humor and sarcasm only decorate the beautiful character of Phoenix, and the same time demonstrating her courage and ability to face complicated situations with a smile on her face.
Works Cited
Welty, Eudora. A Worn Path. Mankato, MN: Creative Education, 1991. Print.
