In "The Scarlet Ibis," the bird is compared to Doodle, the narrator's brother. Doodle was born sick, and his family thought he was not going to live long. However, Doodle does survive, even if he is a very frail and unhealthy child. Doodle tries to be like his brother, but he is incapable of it. When he dies, we see that the narrator compares his death to that of the scarlet ibis that died earlier in the story. They were both far from home, weak, and different than everyone else. They also died during a storm. The ibis is also a way for the brother to process Doodle's death and deal with his guilt.
