A Worn Path

A Worn Path describes the journey of an elderly black fair sex named capital of Arizona Jackson who walks from her billet to the city of Natchez to get medicine for her sick grandson. The landscape as genus Phoenix perceives it becomes a primary focus of the vividly evoked narrative nature is depicted as alternately beautiful and as an impediment to Phoenixs progress. As she walks, she struggles against intense fatigue and poor eyesight, as well as such obstacles as sticker bushes and barbed wire.The combined effects of her old age, her poor vision, and her poetic view of the world heighten the lyricism and symbolism of the narrative. For example, she mistakes a scarecrow for a bound ghost until she draws close enough to touch its empty sleeve. A particularly tense episode occurs when she encounters a white hunter who appears friendly at first, but then makes a condescending suggestion that she is probably going to town to see Santa Claus. When he inadvertently drops a nickel , Phoenix distracts him and manages to pick it up, feeling that she is stealth as she does so.The hunter suddenly points his gun at her, and while he may have seen her pick up the nickel, it is undecipherable what his actual motivation is for this sonorous gesture. Phoenix, however, does not appear afraid the hunter lowers his gun and she manages to continue on her way unharmed and without returning the nickel. Finally ambit the shining city of Natchez, Phoenix enters the big buildingpresumably a hospitalwhere a nurse questions her about her grandson, asking if he has died.Phoenix remains funnily quiet at first, as if deaf to the nurses questions. She then apologizes, claiming that her memory had suddenly failed herthat for a moment, she could not remember why she had made her long journey. The story concludes with Phoenixs darling description of her grandson, whose throat was hurt several years ago when he swallowed lye. She declares that he is not dead, receives the medicin e for him, along with another nickel, with which she decides to buy him a Christmas extraditea little windmill. A Worn PathA Worn Path describes the journey of an elderly black woman named Phoenix Jackson who walks from her home to the city of Natchez to get medicine for her sick grandson. The landscape as Phoenix perceives it becomes a primary focus of the vividly evoked narrative nature is depicted as alternately beautiful and as an impediment to Phoenixs progress. As she walks, she struggles against intense fatigue and poor eyesight, as well as such obstacles as thorn bushes and barbed wire.The combined effects of her old age, her poor vision, and her poetic view of the world heighten the lyricism and symbolism of the narrative. For example, she mistakes a scarecrow for a dancing ghost until she draws close enough to touch its empty sleeve. A particularly tense episode occurs when she encounters a white hunter who appears friendly at first, but then makes a condescending suggest ion that she is probably going to town to see Santa Claus. When he inadvertently drops a nickel, Phoenix distracts him and manages to pick it up, feeling that she is stealing as she does so.The hunter suddenly points his gun at her, and while he may have seen her pick up the nickel, it is unclear what his actual motivation is for this threatening gesture. Phoenix, however, does not appear afraid the hunter lowers his gun and she manages to continue on her way unharmed and without returning the nickel. Finally reaching the shining city of Natchez, Phoenix enters the big buildingpresumably a hospitalwhere a nurse questions her about her grandson, asking if he has died.Phoenix remains strangely quiet at first, as if deaf to the nurses questions. She then apologizes, claiming that her memory had suddenly failed herthat for a moment, she could not remember why she had made her long journey. The story concludes with Phoenixs heartfelt description of her grandson, whose throat was injured several years ago when he swallowed lye. She declares that he is not dead, receives the medicine for him, along with another nickel, with which she decides to buy him a Christmas presenta little windmill.