Symbolism and Allusion Symbolism A symbol is an

Symbolism and Allusion

Symbolism • A symbol is an object, a person, an animal, or a place that represents something beyond its literal meaning.

What can be a symbol? • An object • Picture • Written word • Sound • Numerals • Language

Mathematical symbols

Political symbols

Religious symbols

Color symbols

What do these symbols mean?

• Symbolism is used to provide meaning to the writing BEYOND what is actually being described.

No wonder the evil character Kaa was a snake in the story Jungle Book.

No wonder the setting changed to a thunderstorm when the Beast is fighting off Gaston.

Example • Grandma says that a rainbow can appear even after the worst storm. • A traveler comes to a fork in the road. He can go in either direction. • Do you have a prized possession that stands for something more than it is? On a separate sheet of paper, write a short paragraph describing your possession and explain what this real-life symbol means to you. If nothing in your life acts as a symbol, think about someone in your life who has a possession he or she is particularly proud of, takes special care of, or guards carefully. What might that possession symbolize to the person?

Allusion • A brief, usually indirect reference to a person, place, or event--real or fictional.

Allusion Another definition – • An allusion is a figure of speech within a piece of written work, which cites another piece of written work.

Allusions can come from • Literature • Speeches • Bible • Art • Film

• “I was surprised his nose was not growing like Pinocchio’s. ” • This refers to the story of Pinocchio, where his nose grew whenever he told a lie. It is from The Adventures of Pinocchio, written by Carlo Collodi.

• “He was a real Romeo with the ladies. ” • Romeo was a character in Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet, and was very romantic in expressing his love for Juliet.

• “It is raining so hard, I hope it doesn’t rain for 40 days and 40 nights. ” • This makes a reference to the biblical story of Noah and the ark he built. He was told by God that it would rain for 40 days and 40 nights and flood the land.