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What Does William Armstrong Symbolize In The Scarlet Ibis

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Keep the Darkness Inside In the short story “The Scarlet Ibis”, the author James Hurst suggests to never let darkness take over, through the use of indirect characterization. William Armstrong, or Doodle, is born crippled and he can't do things that normal people could do. His older brother is ashamed of that, and sets out to teach Doodle how to walk. It takes a lot of hard work and effort. However, when Doodle finally succeeds in walking, it is revealed that his older brother only does it only for his own pride and because he does not want to be embarrassed of his little brother. After the walking accomplishment, Doodle’s older brother prepares “...a terrific development program for...” Doodle. He teaches “him to run, to swim, to climb trees,

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