Phoenix Jackson in A Worn Path Out of my way, all you foxes, owls, beetles, jack rabbits, coons and wild animals! Keep the big wild hogs out of my path. Dont let none of those come running my direction. I got a long way (116). Through the character of Phoenix Jackson in A Worn Path Welty produces a picture of an aging African-American woman in the Jim Crow South. In A Worn Path we learn of the hardships Jackson faces on her weekly journey for medicine to sooth the pain of her grandson. Welty conveys this these hardships by giving the reader insight into the physical health, the mental health, and the socio-economic status of Jackson.In A Worn Path, Phoenix Jacksons physical age inhibits both her journey through the woods and life. The round character is weak and feeble. Welty conveys her age by comparing Phoenix to a tree. Her skin had a pattern all its own of numberless branching wrinkles and as though a whole little tree stood in the middle of her forehead (116). Jackson is personified as an aging tree in. Her fragility is further emphasized as she earnestly tries to journey through the woods ad a barb wired fence. The character does not have ample dexterity or flexibility; thus, maneuvering through the lush woods is time-consuming, challenging and strenuous. Phoenix Jacksons, in A Worn Path, physical limitations eluded to the difficulties she faces throughout her journey.In addition to her physical deterioration, Phoenix Jackson is struggling with senility and mental fatigue. The round character is fatigued by life. The protagonist is consumed with grief regarding her economic hardship, grandsons failing health and the blatant racism. All of these social factors are eroding her mind. Jackson has lost her perception and memory. She is easily fooled and mistaken. For example, in the woods, the elderly woman approaches an ominous figure that she is unable to identify. As she continues to approach the unknown object, ...
