The Scarlet Ibis

The Scarlet Ibis is a story of two brothers, the narrator, whose name is not given but is simply referred to as "Brother" by his younger sibling, and "Doodle". Doodle is born a very sickly child who isn't expected to live. His brother wanted someone who could run and jump and play with him, but instead he got the fragile Doodle; this makes him angry. Determined to make Doodle into the brother he wants, Brother pushes him constantly, past the point of physical endurance; he is often cruel to him, even making him touch the coffin that was originally built for him as a baby. Doodle does learn a lot from Brother, but this comes at a high price.

Eventually, at the age of six, he even learns to walk. Enlightened by this, the brother decides to teach him how to run, climb vines, swim, and even fight to prepare him for school. However, almost a year after the plan was made, and the deadline was almost up, Doodle was still far from the original plans.

One day, a big red bird appears in the garden, looking sick and tired. The boys' father identifies it as a Scarlet Ibis, a tropical bird that must have been blown off course because of a recent storm. When the bird suddenly dies, Doodle, pitying the creature, decides to bury it. Afterwards, the boys go down to Horsehead Landing, a nearby swamp. On their way back to the house Brother has Doodle practice rowing. A sudden rainstorm comes, and when they reach the riverbank Doodle is tired and frightened. Brother leaves Doodle behind in the pouring rain, angry that he can't finish "training" Doodle before school starts. He soon returns for Doodle, only to find that he has died with blood flowing out of his mouth, staining his throat and shirt red. He had died like the Scarlet Ibis. Brother cries with regret for what he had done.