https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7 Yen Dang and Sarah Yoo en-us 2019-09-25 20:14:31 UTC 2025-11-06 19:11:42 UTC hello@padlet.com shyoo100 https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/389731363 "Swooping carefree over the moors, they would go singing and crying out across the great spaces of air, dipping and darting, strong and proud in their freedom and their sometime loneliness" (Plath, 13).

The protagonist, Millicent, describes the heather birds as free spirits. This symbol of freedom, the heather birds, are admired by Millicent for their pride in independence. Because heather birds do have adversities, as mentioned by their sometime loneliness, the path of being a heather bird is a difficult choice and only taken by those daring. Although this course of life can seem unappealing to many, it is rewarding for the promise of freedom and those who dare to journey down this path will become free from the burdens of society and cliques. Millicent feels trapped in the confines of her new group and looks to heather birds in figuring out who she truly wants to be.]]> 2019-09-25 20:23:53 UTC https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/389731363 shyoo100 https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/389731819 "Within Millicent another melody soared,strong and exuberant, so clear and lilting over the far lands" (Plath 13) 
Earlier, Millicent had been locked within the expectations of school hierarchy. She believed that she had to conform with the rest of the sorority in order to be accepted. That she had to be a common sparrow with the rest of them. Throughout the story she constantly questions herself, whether it really is worth it. At the end of the story, the answer resounds within her: the song of the heather birds. She realizes that she doesn't have to be part of the sorority to get along and socialize with people and she is free and she allows herself to follow her own path.


]]> 2019-09-25 20:24:59 UTC https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/389731819 shyoo100 https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/389732053 What do they mean?
The main symbol of the short story, Initiation, is the heather birds. Heather birds represent freedom, specifically, freedom from conforming to the social class and peer pressure in the protagonist's, Millicent, case. Becoming like a heather bird is a choice, as heather birds also represent a path that people must take to be themselves and free from the pressure of society. People are allured by the idea of heather birds, but a heather bird is an intangible concept to most. Repeatedly changing yourself to benefit yourself, opening yourself up to others, and acting differently from others when in disagreement takes much effort and courage from an individual. Therefore, most people do not wish to take this path. Millicent, however, eventually starts her transformation as a heather bird.

How were they introduced, developed, and concluded?
The concept of heather birds was introduced to Millicent by a man on the bus. According to him, they're purple birds that inhabit the mythical moors. Not only that but they, apparently, have delicious eyebrows. The mention of heather birds intrigued Millicent because she was able to develop a comradeship with a stranger over them. She had interacted with someone, without the prestige of being part of the sorority. Eventually, the heather birds become more than some weird mythological creature. The more she thought about the sorority, the more she realized that all the members were just a normal group of sparrows. There was no difference between all the girls in the clique. Heather birds, on the other hand, were unique and were free to do what they wanted. There were no rules stopping them, they could sing and fly over the moor all they wanted. The theme of heather birds concludes as Millicent decides to choose freedom over becoming trapped in a popular clique. Although joining the sorority group seemed to be the most appealing decision, Millicent had realized that joining the group would make her just like all the other girls in the sorority, popular, but futile. The theme of freedom conveyed by the heather birds became Millicent's choice in the end.

]]> 2019-09-25 20:25:38 UTC https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/389732053 shyoo100 https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/390391371 2019-09-27 05:35:14 UTC https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/390391371 shyoo100 https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/390391583 2019-09-27 05:37:14 UTC https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/390391583 shyoo100 https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/390392064 2019-09-27 05:40:56 UTC https://padlet.com/yndang101/nclhhwba41l7/wish/390392064