Symbolism of the Journey - Essay Example

? Themes and the Corresponding Works: Symbolism of the Journey No: Roll No: Themes andthe Corresponding Works: Symbolism of the Journey Literary works usually have their own themes on which, they are written. In the overall narration or content of the literary work, we can find one or many recurring themes that are sometimes very apparent and sometimes concealed between the lines. The literary works that are taken for comparison and contrast in this paper are The Road not Taken by Robert Frost and A Worn Path by Eudora Welty. Both the works have a recurring theme of journey as both of them have their own symbols of journey. The Road not Taken and A Worn Path display the worn out paths that the travelers have to travel in their lives and in spite of all the difficulties and hindrances, the travelers do not want to stop and end their journey without getting closer to their respective ambitions. Robert Frost in his poem, The Road not Taken informs about the two paths, he finds while travelling through the woods. He has to select one to travel, while he shows interest in both. After reaching the forked paths, he becomes double minded and chooses the one that seems better to him. He informs that both the paths appear equal. He took just the one that according to him was less travelled by. However, he wanted to travel the other as well. The paths were difficult but he was not ready to withdraw and chose the one to start his journey. Despite all the hardships he meets in the path, he wishes to travel and reach his desired destination. However, he leaves one path with a sigh as he wishes if he could come to this way again. There are a number of symbols of journey in the poem such as roads, woods, traveler, travel, step, way, one less traveled by and lead. Eudora Welty in her short story, A Worn Path narrates the story of an old African American woman who is travelling through a worn out path in order to get her grandson’s medicine. Her grandson has swallowed lye some years back due to which, he has trouble in breathing and swallowing food. The woman knows that her path is difficult to cover but her love and ambition are much stronger than her body state. She meets a number of obstacles in her way but due to her will, she defeats all the obstacles and finally reaches her destination. Although, she is very ambitious about her aim but after reaching her destination, she forgets her mission of taking the medicine and gains knowledge about her mission when a nurse asks her about her grandson’s survival. Her appearance shows her financial status. She is old but as compared to her age, she shows her strength by traveling such a long way. The theme of traveling is quite clear in the short story and like the poem, The Road not Taken, this story also has numerous symbols of journey such as path, steps, walked, direction, way, woods, hill, march, bank, climb, track, move, road and so on. As we start reading the poem The Road not Taken, we can easily notice the mentioning of “Two roads” at the very start of the poem. These roads are symbolic of journeying as roads are usually used for travelling purposes. Similarly, in the story A Worn Path, in the second line, the theme of travelling can be noticed as the writer writes, “Far out in the country there was an old Negro woman with her head tied red rag, coming along a path through the pinewoods” (Welty, 1941). A woman coming along a path is indicative of journeying and she is on her way to reach somewhere. Therefore, from the very start of both the works, it is apparent that symbols of journey such as roads and path are present that are representational of the theme of travelling. The paths from which, Frost has to choose are in the woods symbolizing the complexity of the journey. Woods have complex appearance and indicate that the travelers are somewhat double minded or unable to decide. Same thing happens to Frost when he is unable to decide even at the end. He takes one way but thinks that if he gets a chance in future, he will travel through this past as well. The whole poem is upon the issue of travelling. However, this travelling is in real terms symbolic of the journey of life, which Frost has to decide whether to select one option as a suitable option for passing the life or the other. He says, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood And sorry I could not travel both” (Frost, 1916) Frost here is aware that he has two options but he is restricted to take only one way. These two options can be farming and poetry. Frost was a farmer but after joining the profession of writing poetry, he left farming. He was not able o work in both paths but the one that was more suitable for him. However, Frost wanted to choose the other as well as he says, “And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back.” (Frost, 1916) According to Frost, both were quite equal for him and he was unable to follow any footsteps on any path. He wanted to return to the first way if he got a chance in life while he also knew that it was quite difficult. In the journey of life, he chose poetry as for his profession and choice and set aside farming that he got as inheritance from his forefathers. The symbolism of travelling and path indicate towards the journey of life in Frost’s case. For his life and career, he was to make a choice that must be rewarding for him and that also suited his temperament. Frost also liked farming that he shows in his acceptance that “I shall be telling this with a sigh” that he has selected the other path and not the one opted by his forefathers. For him, the choice was difficult but it rewarded him. The path that he chose was less traveled by, but was good for him. The path, which the Negro woman, Phoenix covers to take the medicine of her grandson, is troublesome. In addition, she is an old woman and for her, this much distance is very long. The writer says, “Her eyes were blue with age”, which means that she was too old that the color of her eyes changed. In that old age, she was covering that difficult path, which had thorny bushes, hills, banks, barbed wire fence, ditches and so on. This travelling of the old woman towards acquiring her grandson’ medicine can be indicative of her efforts towards ending her loneliness. Here also, like Frost’s indicative path travelling, the woman’s covering of a long distance can be symbolic of her journey of life, which is as troubling and thorny as the actual travel to the hospital. Her coming out of all troubles can indicate that she has handled all the troubles of life with strength and has always succeeded. She asks all the intruders of her way to set aside as she says, “Out of my way, all you foxes, owls, beetles, jack rabbits, coons and wild . . . Keep the big wild hogs out of my path. Don’t let none of those come running my direction. I got a long way” (Welty, 1941) She is aware of her path and knows that it is long. She has covered it a number of times. From this passage, it is also indicated that in living her life, she was almost lonely and only animals accompanied her. She passed a long life and was still surviving and her survival was only possible because of her strong will that she displays in the story by not stopping against any obstacle or hindrance that comes in her way. Phoenix being aged faces obscurity in climbing the hill and for getting the medicine for her grandson is altogether an uphill task but she completes that task and even climbs the hill. Her age tries to stop her and informs that she is weak but her strong will do not let her accept that she has no more stamina. When she reaches near the hill, she says, “Seem like there is chains about my feet, time I get this far,” she said, in the voice of argument old people keep to use with themselves. “Something always take a hold of me on this hill— pleads I should stay.” (Welty, 1941) Phoenix feels that her feet are chained because of the troubling task that comes forth. However, her struggling nature and her love for her grandson makes her to continue her journey. Her travelling is symbolic of her journey in life and the obstacles are the hindrances that come her way. Her struggling nature lets her overcome all the obstacles and break the chains that are placed in her feet. After climbing down the hill successfully, she gets caught in a thorny bush but she is not abusing about the bush and thinks that it is the duty of the bush to become an obstacle in her way. However, she gets rid of the bush and moves forward towards her destination. She falls in the ditch, covers the passage with the help of a log, gets attacked by a dog and much more. For her, there are too many external and internal conflicts. Internally, she is weak physically and has weak eyes while externally, she faces many challenges such as climbing the hill, getting rid of the thorny bush, crossing the water area with the log, handling the barbed-wire fence, the black dog and the hunter. However, in her life’s journey, she handles all the internal as well as external challenges to move forward in life. The hunter asked the old woman to end her journey and go back as he says, “Well, Granny,” he said, “you must be a hundred years old, and scared of nothing. I’d give you a dime if I had any money with me. But you take my advice and stay home, and nothing will happen to you”. (Welty, 1941) According to the hunter, the old woman was too old to continue her journey and she was to take rest in her these days. However, Phoenix is not ready to give up but gets more strengthened at the discouraging remarks of the hunter. In the whole story, we find Phoenix’s struggle to continue the journey and the hindrances that are there to block her way towards her destination. In her life, as a Negro, she suffers at the hands of people but continues to exist with the help of her struggle and will power. Unlike other members of her family, she is strong emotionally. Her continuous talking to herself and the animals informs that she is lonely but she never withdraws or accepts defeat but continues to resist against her opposing forces. In both the two works, we have found a number of symbols for journey and the journey of the travelers in both the works relates to the journey of life in which, the travelers have to use their will power to decide as to what is better for them. Frost chooses a way that is suitable for him while Phoenix has to travel the hard way to reach to her destination. Unlike Frost, Phoenix has not gone for the most suitable but what is available. Frost wants to walk the other path as well that he has left while Phoenix has no more options. She was to walk the given path or just discontinue her struggle. The symbolic journey of Phoenix is very complicated as she has to struggle towards her destination by defeating all the obstacles and hindrances of her way. The obstacles are both external and internal. Her age, her physical condition, thorny bushes, hill, banks, wild animals, barbed-wire fence, all are hindrances in her way but she successfully, defeats all the obstructions. In other to continue her journey, she has to carry on her struggle, otherwise, she has to give up accepting defeat. On the other hand, Frost has to opt from the two ways, one goes to adoption of farming while other goes to poetry. He opts for the one for his life’s journey but always feels a gap for the one, he has rejected. Both the works show struggle towards the journey of life and are quite symbolic. The travelers have to take worn out paths for their continuance. References Champion, Laurie, ed. (1994). The Critical Response to Eudora Welty's Fiction. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. DeFusco, Andrea. (1999). Readings on Robert Frost. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc. Frost, Robert. (1916). The Road not Taken. Welty, Eudora. (1941). A Worn Path. Read More