“The Story of a White Blackbird” By Alfred de Musset

Introduction

“The Story of a White Blackbird” is an allegorical tale of a young blackbird who stands out from his family, due to his white plumage. It is narrated by the bird himself, as he struggles to fit in with his family, and then moves on to stranger tribes which all deem him unworthy of living with them. There is a sense of unsettled resentment towards the birds father, and dissatisfaction with life is apparent in every part of the story. It is a profound and simply told story that can be interpreted at many different levels of philosophy, and puts its point across in a well thought out manner. Not only this, the author has written it in such a way that it seems appropriate for reading by anyone from children to adults. The evolution of the story as the blackbird travels from one pace to another in order to belong is tragic and moving in its own way, and teaches good moral principles to everyone who has read it, regardless of their age. The basic lesson that Musset has attempted to teach through this story is that the only way to achieve contentment in ones life is to be completely self-reliant and trusting of oneself.

Discussion

The story starts with the blackbird lovingly describing his family and the environment into which he is born. The author is apt at describing the scenario and its contributing elements in a way that the reader is immediately interested in the turn of events. Although it may be confusing in the beginning as the reader cannot grasp the situation in its entiety, by the end of the first page it is made clear that the scenario is based about the narrator, who is a little blackbird suffering from rebuttals by his father, without knowing why. As it slowly comes to light, the blackbird is somewhat of a rarity among others, as he is growing white plumage instead of black, as is commonplace among blackbirds. Shunned by his father, the blackbird takes flight when he coems across a traveling pigeon, and his adventure begins as he meets several different types of birds in his own travels. Each bird is convinced that the blackbird is among their own kind and offer to take him up with their own tribes. However, after it becomes obvious through one method or the other that the blackbird is not one of them, the other birds shun him and move along, forcing the blackbird to be isolated and alone once more in the world. The turning pointi n the story comes around when the young blackbird has just about given up on life, and overhears a passing bird:

“Goodness gracious!” said one of them to the other, “if you ever succeed, I will make you a present of a white blackbird!”

After hearing of this, the blackbird is rid of his predicament and begins to see himself in a better light, working hard towards a ...