The Scarlet Ibisby James Hurst

Short Story UnitMrs. Demos

2008

About the AuthorJames Hurst

• Born in 1922• Lived on a farm in North Carolina• At one point he wanted to be an opera singer• Become a banker and wrote stories

The Scarlet IbisShort Story

Exposition:Setting: a cotton farm in the deep south between

1912 and 1918.Characters: Narrator (Brother) and Doodle

Mother and Father and Aunt Nicey

Conflict: You tell me after you read the story.

What is a Scarlet Ibis?

• Range: Central America and North South America• Habitat: Tropical Regions and Rainforests• Diet: insects, fish, meat and fruits• Not Endangered

Literary Terms

• Symbol: An object, a person, a place, or an experience that represents something else, usually something abstract.

• Theme: The main idea or message of a literary work.

• Stated Theme:expressed directly and explicitly• Implied Theme: revealed gradually

Literary Terms continued

• Point of View: Relationship of the narrator to the story.

• First person point of view: narrator is a character in the story. Personal pronoun “I”

• Third person limited: narrator reveals the thoughts, feelings, and observations of only one character as “he” or “she”

• Third person omniscient: all knowing point of view. Narrator not a character in the story. Knows everything about the characters and events

Vocabulary

1. Careen (V): to tilt or sway while moving, as if out of control.

2. Serene (adj): calm, peaceful, and undisturbed3. Infallibility (N): the state of being incapable

of making an error4. Blighted (adj): damaged or spoiled

Vocabulary

1. Doggedness (N): steady persistence; stubbornness

2. Reiterated (V): to say or do again; repeat 3. Precariously (adv): dangerously; insecurely

Think and Write

• Answer the following question.

• Have you ever wanted something very badly only to be disappointed when you got your wish? How did you react to the disappointment?