Blooms Literary Themes - THE HEROS ... - ymerleksi - home

The Worn Path 229people” (237). During Phoenix’s life in the South, relational literacycould mean her very survival. Phoenix describes herself as “an oldwoman without an education,” and it’s true she didn’t attend school,but careful examination of what Phoenix says, of the manner in whichshe says it, and even of her silences, reveals how literate she is. Heruse of language—complicated, intricate, at times humorous—revealsa woman of color who refuses to be silenced by the society in whichshe lives. When a hunter finds Phoenix in a ditch and asks what she isdoing there, she replies she’s lying there on her back “like a June-bugwaiting to be turned over.” The hunter wants to know where Phoenixlives, but she replies noncommittally, “Way back yonder. . . . You can’teven see it from here.” Surely Phoenix knows where she lives andcould have given the man a more exact location, but she chooses notto reveal too much. Likewise, her answer to the question about herage is vague and even playful. Is there “no telling” because she doesn’tknow her age or because she doesn’t wish to reveal this about herself?When Phoenix comes to the dead cornfield, she says, “Now throughthe maze,” a play on the word maize. On her journey, Phoenixcontinues to play with language. She imaginatively converses withanimals and a scarecrow and cryptically repeats, “I walking in theirsleep” when she passes abandoned cabins.In Natchez, the doctor’s office attendant greets Phoenix with thewords, “A charity case, I suppose.” Phoenix’s reaction is to remainsilent, even as the woman asks questions that affect Phoenix “as if a flywere bothering her.” With her silence, Phoenix controls the situationand exasperates the brusque attendant by forcing her to pay attentionto the black woman. Phoenix continues her silence, sitting “erectand motionless, just as if she were in armor,” when the nurse comesin and questions her. Finally, “like an old woman begging a dignifiedforgiveness,” Phoenix knows and tells the story the nurse and attendantwant to hear and already believe: She is old, uneducated, andhas a failing memory. Phoenix again takes control of the situation byspeaking without being asked and talking about her grandson. Thisconfirms that the nurse did not really want to know about Phoenix,as she quickly dismisses her with the medicine and the word charity.After hearing her story, the attendant, perhaps because “it’s Christmastime,” offers Phoenix a few pennies. Cleverly, Phoenix points out that“five pennies is a nickel” and receives a nickel from her. This nickel