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Symbols
Water is the most overt symbol in The Miracle Worker. It’s the cornerstone of the play’s most famous scene (and one of the most famous scenes in American theater), in which Annie Sullivan pumps water on Helen Keller’s hands in order to teach her how to communicate via sign language. This scene—and water as it functions in the play more generally—has a strong religious undertone. In Christianity, water is a symbol of life and beginnings (think of a baptism, for instance). It’s apt that water is what inspires Helen Keller to finally understand how to communicate with the external world because in doing so it’s as if she has been born anew, baptized in the waters of truth and knowledge. In this way, water symbolizes the miracle of Helen’s rebirth.
Water Quotes in The Miracle Worker
The The Miracle Worker quotes below all refer to the symbol of Water. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Act 3
Quotes
HELEN: Wah. Wah.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Miracle Worker LitChart as a printable PDF.
Water Symbol Timeline in The Miracle Worker
The timeline below shows where the symbol Water appears in The Miracle Worker. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Act 1
Five years pass. Helen, now a little girl, sits outside by a water pump, next to a dog and two black children named Martha and Percy, who are...
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...that Helen locked her in her room. Appalled, Kate finds Helen, sitting outside by the water pump. She finds that Helen has no key. While James cheerfully finds a ladder and...
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Act 2
The lights dim and rise again, signaling that it’s morning. Viney comes outside to pump water. Inside, Helen is wandering around the table, Annie is studying Helen carefully, and Kate tries...
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...even began talking when she was only six months old—one of her first words was “water.”
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Act 3
...and Helen sit in bed in the garden house. Annie teaches Helen how to spell “water” and “egg.” She mutters to herself that she needs to find a way to teach...
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...blissfully silent—a statement that infuriates Arthur. Annie continues to sit with Helen, spelling the word “water.” Arthur tells James that if he becomes a parent, he’ll know what “separation” means—and one...
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...out “D-O-G” and then touches Helens hand to Belle. Then, she gets a tumbler of water and thrusts Helen’s hand into it. Helen removes her hand and wipes it on the...
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...takes the keys back from her. James walks into the house while, outside, Viney pumps water from the water pump. At supper, James says grace, quoting from the Biblical story of...
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...floor. Wearily, James says, “I think we’ve started all over.” Helen finds a pitcher of water and swings it in Annie’s direction, getting water all over Annie’s dress. Annie stands up...
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Outside, Annie leads Helen to the water pump, still holding the pitcher. She touches Helen’s hand to the handle of the pump....
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