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Symbolism & Allegory

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Symbolism

The use of symbols (concrete objects) torepresent abstract ideas and emotions

Language itself is a system of spoken or writtensymbols by which we communicate. Every wordis a symbol; the five letters that form the word

'chair' represent a sound as well as a physicalobject.In writing, symbolism is the use of a word, a

phrase, or a description, which represents adeeper meaning than the words themselves. Thiskind of extension of meaning can transform thewritten word into a very powerful instrument.http://www.worsleyschool.net/socialarts/symbolism/page.html

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Religious Symbolism

Religious symbolism is the use of text,

images, procedures, or actual physicalobjects to represent an idea or belief. The

most common example is the use of

objects to symbolize the faith itself, as inthe use of a cross to represent

Christianity, or the Star of David torepresent Judaism.

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Political Symbolism

Political symbolism is often used to represent a politicalstandpoint. It can take the form of banners, acronyms,pictures, flags, mottos, and many other things.

For example, the Canadian flag contains a maple leaf, whichhas long been a symbol of things Canadian. The two barsrepresent both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans which bound

the country on either side, and the two founding cultures,English and French.

The mid-20th century German Nazi Party made extensive

use of graphic symbols. These included the swastika, theeagle, the iron cross, and the dual lightning bolts (the symbolof the SS) pictured at the left.

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Color Symbolism

Simple colors can also be symbolic,depending on your location, or the context

in which they are used. Red, white and blueare symbolic of all things American. Greenhas come to represent anything which is

environmentally friendly.Colors can represent different thingsdepending on where you live. For example,in Asian countries, red symbolizes happiness,marriage, and prosperity; in some countriesthe color of mourning is white.

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Advertising Symbolism

Just as in any media, symbolism is usedextensively in advertising. A good example,

with which you are certainly familiar, isthe use of actors dressed in white labcoats who are discussing the merits of aproduct in a laboratory setting. These

symbols of the medical profession aremeant to imply that the product has beenapproved by and has the support ofdoctors or medical scientists.

http://www.cartype.com/pics/5781/full/2010_ford_mustang_badge.jpghttp://www.iptrademarkattorney.com/nike_swoosh.jpghttp://www2.tau.ac.il/InternetFiles/news/UserFiles/image/%D7%A6%D7%97/mcdonalds.jpg

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Literary Symbolism

In literature, symbolism is used to provide

meaning to the writing beyond what isactually being described. The plot and

action that take place in a story can be

thought of as one level, while thesymbolism of certain things in the writing

act on another level to enhance the story.

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Symbolism can take place by having the theme ofa story represented on a physical level. A simple

example might be the occurrence of a storm at atcritical point, when there is conflict or highemotions. The storm might symbolize these.

Similarly a transition from day to night, or springto winter, could symbolize a move from goodnessto evil, or hope to despair. A river in a scene

could represent the flow of life, from birth todeath. Flowers can symbolize youth or beauty.

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Not everything in a story is necessarily

symbolic. A garden landscape is just agarden ... until it is contrasted with a

bustling city, at which point the garden

could symbolize tranquility, peace, orescape.

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Symbols in Literature

In The Lord of the Flies, Ralph with his

conch shell represents order anddemocracy, while Jack symbolizes savagery

and anarchy. The island itself symbolizes

the world in which we live, and theactions of the characters are symbolic of

the way different people conduct theirlives. The beast represents the darker side

of human nature.

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The play MacBeth by William

Shakespeare uses blood, both real andimagined, as a symbol of guilt, both of

MacBeth and Lady MacBeth. Another

symbol used in the play is a raven, whichusually represents ill fortune.

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In the novel Animal Farm, the entire storyis a symbol for the evils of communism, with

the main animal characters representing keyfigures in the Russian revolution. The novelcan be read entirely as a children's story, but

when you come to realize what the variouselements and characters in the storysymbolize, the novel takes on a whole newmeaning. That's why this particular work hasbecome such a classic. This kind of story iscalled an allegory.

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Allegory

Allegory is a form of extended metaphor, inwhich objects, persons, and actions in a

narrative, are equated with the meaningsthat lie outside the narrative itself. Theunderlying meaning has moral, social,

religious, or political significance, andcharacters are often personifications ofabstract ideas as charity, greed, or envy.Thus an allegory is a story with twomeanings, a literal meaning and a symbolicmeaning.

http://www.tnellen.com/cybereng/lit_terms/allegory.html

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Symbolism versus Allegory

A symbol is a word, place, character, or object thatmeans something beyond what it is on a literal level.

Symbolism is the act of using a word, place, character, or objectin such a way. For instance, consider the stop sign.

It is literally a metal octagon painted red with white streaks.However, everyone on the road will be much safer if weunderstand that this object also represents the act of coming

to a complete stop--an idea hard to encompass brieflywithout some sort of symbolic substitute. An object, asetting, or even a character in literature can representanother, more general idea. Note, however, that symbols

function perfectly well in isolation from other symbols aslong as the reader already knows their assigned meaning.Allegory, however, does not work that way; allegory requires

symbols working in conjunction with each other.

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Symbolism versus Allegory

An allegory involves using many interconnectedsymbols or allegorical figures in such as way that innearly every element of the narrative has a meaning beyond

the literal level, i.e., everything in the narrative is a symbolthat relates to other symbols within the story. The allegoricalstory, poem, or play can be read either literally or as asymbolic statement about a political, spiritual, or

psychological truth. The word allegory derives from theGreek allegoria ("speaking otherwise"): The term looselydescribes any story in verse or prose that has a double meaning.

This narrative acts as an extended metaphor in which the plotor events reveal a meaning beyond what occurs in the text,creating a moral, spiritual, or even political meaning. The actof interpreting a story as if each object in it had an allegoricalmeaning is called allegoresis.