The Worn Path By Eudora Welty

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In Eudora Welty’s story “The Worn Path” and William Stafford’s poem “Traveling Through the Dark“ both main characters face a journey in which what they learn along the way is more important than the destination. “The Worn Path” is a story about a frail grandmother, Phoenix, who travels a challenging journey through the woods to get medicine for her sick grandson. She faces many obstacles but her overpowering love for her grandson motivates her along the journey. Secondly, “Traveling Through the Dark” is a story of a heroic man who must make a quick life decision. One night he is traveling along a narrow and dangerous mountain road when spots a dead deer on the road. He decides to stop and move the deer to prevent any harm from happening. While moving the deer he notices that her belly is large and warm even though the rest of her body was cold. He realized that she is pregnant, but before he knew what to do with the unborn deer he notices a car coming his way. This is when he ultimately has to make the quick decision what to do. The power of the journey does derive…show more content…
Phoenix has to make the decision of if she will travel by foot to acquire medicine for her grandson who has swallowed lye and has suffered for years without healing. This decision is one Phoenix already knows she will make because of her overpowering love for her grandson but it will not be an easy journey. She knows this because it is not the first time her aged and brittle body has made this trek. Also, the main character in “Traveling Through the Dark” has an emotionally difficult decision to make deciding weather or not to save the unborn doe from its mother’s belly and possibly risking his own life and the life of oncoming people. He ultimately makes the decision to push the mother off the edge into the river. These decisions are similar in the way that both characters are being brave and heroic not for self pride but for others

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