Symbolism The sign and the meaning What is

Symbolism The sign and the meaning

What is it? • Something that on the surface is it seems but which also has another meaning or even several meanings. – For example, a sword may be a sword and also symbolize justice. – A symbol may be said to embody an idea.

Why is it used? • Symbols can be used as a quick way to express meaning; sometimes more than one meaning all at once.

What are the types of symbols? There are two general types of symbols: • universal symbols that embody universally recognizable meanings wherever used, – such as light to symbolize knowledge, a skull to symbolize death, etc. , • constructed symbols that are given symbolic meaning by the way an author uses them in a literary work, – as the white whale becomes a symbol of evil in Moby Dick.

What are some examples? • Universal- • • Constructed-

How do I find symbols? • Guess the meaning of "symbol. " Just as the American bald eagle is often thought of as the symbol of the United States, symbols used in literature are objects used to represent other things or ideas. – For example, in Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter, " the "A" that Hester Prynne was forced to wear represented not only that she was an adulteress, but also the first letter of the name of her illegitimate child's father, the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale.

How do I find symbols? Recognize the signs. • One is the frequency an object or character is mentioned in a piece of literature--if it is mentioned often, it is probably important. • Another way to find a symbol is to look at how much detail is used in describing an object. – These two methods give clues that the writer wants you to infer something about a particular object.

How do I find symbols? Trust your feelings. If an image or object described by the author makes you react in a certain way, you are probably on to something, never discredit your own feelings just because you're a novice. It is very likely that the author planted the image in the work in a particular way to alert the reader that a symbol is important.

Summary Write at least one symbol you have seen in a movie or a book. Please give the title of the book or movie.