"A Worn Path" by Eudora Welty is a short story about an elderly African-American woman named Phoenix Jackson who is walking through the woods into town. On her way she encounters many deterrents, like a large dog, barbed wire, and a hunter from whom she pockets a nickel that he drops, and a lady who ties her shoes along with many other obstacles. Her reason for going to Natchez is to pick up a supply of medicine for her grandson, who accidentally swallowed lye a few years before. It is inferred that Pheonix Jackson has dementia for she sees hallucinations. Through numerous hints in the story it is also inferred that the medicine she is picking up for grandson is not necessary due to the fact that her grandson died many years ago. However she thinks that he is still alive due to her hallucinations. She tells the nurse in the hospital that that the damage to his throat never fully heals, and every so often his throat will begin to swell shut, which shows that the grandson has died of suffocation. It is Old Phoenix's love for her grandson that causes her to face the trial of the journey to town, every time it is necessary, with no questions asked. At its heart, "A Worn Path" is a tale of undying love and devotion that pushes us toward a goal.
Famous quotes containing the words worn and/or path:
“There is a rhythm to the ending of a marriage just like the rhythm of a courtship—only backward. You try to start again but get into blaming over and over. Finally you are both worn out, exhausted, hopeless. Then lawyers are called in to pick clean the corpses. The death has occurred much earlier.”
—Erica Jong (b. 1942)
“The path was a vague parting in the grass
That led us to a weathered windowsill.
We pressed our faces to the pane. “You see,” he said,
“Everything’s as she left it when she died....””
—Robert Frost (1874–1963)