A Worn Path

In the short story written by Eudora Welty the main theme seems to be the the trials and hardships of life as we grow and get older.
Phoenix Jackson although an old women starts out this story very determined. She is seen walking down the path fighting with the thickets and attempting to scare away any animals that may be lurking nearby.
Like in life Phoenix has her mind set on what she is set out to accomplish and does not let anything stand in her way although every little part of her trip seems to be another obstacle trying to block her path. "Seem like there is chains about my feet, time I get this far", (449) for even the hill she is climbing is another bump in the road that is trying to drag her down.
Her trip to town seems to take a very long time even though the story is broken up into events that happen along the way. I think Eudora Welty does this to tie the story into everyday life events. Almost as each event is some memory that one would have late in life.
You get the feeling that Phoenix has lived a long life and is not surprised or startled by anything or anyone she comes across. At one point she is attacked by a dog and has a gun pointed in her face. Even still Phoenix remains calm and unfazed by each of these events.
At some point Phoenix seems to forget why she has set out on her trip. This is of course towards the end of the story and parallel with the age of Phoenix in her old age she seems a little lost and confused but eventually remembers why she is there.
The reason she is in town, for some medicine for her grandson who drank some lye.
One of the questions seems to be if her grandson is still alive or if he has been dead for some time. Phoenix can't remember how long its been since her grandson became ill, a few months or a few years. The feeling here is that he probably had died from drinking the lye some time ago.