Symbolism: Creating and Critiquing

Introduction

Symbolism in literature is a literary device that involves using objects, characters, or actions to represent abstract ideas or concepts beyond their literal meaning. It adds depth and layers of meaning to a text, allowing authors to convey complex themes, emotions, or social commentary indirectly. Readers engage with symbolism to uncover deeper insights and interpret the work’s hidden significance.

How to Create Symbolism in a Fictional Work

Here are some steps to create symbolism in a fictional work:

1. Choose a symbol: Start by choosing a symbol that will represent a specific idea or emotion in your story. The symbol can be an object, color, animal, or anything else that you feel fits the story.
2. Develop the symbol: Once you have chosen a symbol, think about how it can be developed throughout the story. Consider how the symbol will be introduced, what it will represent, and how it will evolve as the story progresses.
3. Use repetition: Repetition is key in developing symbolism. Repeating the symbol in various contexts throughout the story can help to reinforce its meaning and significance.
4. Connect the symbol to the theme: The symbol should be connected to the theme of your story. It should represent an idea or emotion that is important to the overall message you are trying to convey.
5. Use contrast: Consider using contrast to enhance the symbolism in your story. For example, using a black and white color scheme can represent the contrast between good and evil.
6. Use sensory details: Using sensory details can help to bring the symbol to life in the minds of the readers. Describe the symbol in detail, using sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell to create a vivid image.

Benefits of Symbolism

Symbolism can provide several benefits in literature and other forms of art, including:

• Adds depth and meaning: Symbolism can add depth and meaning to a story, poem, or artwork by conveying complex ideas and emotions that might be difficult to express through literal language.
• Engages the reader or viewer: Symbols can engage the reader or viewer by requiring them to interpret and analyze what they are seeing or reading. This can create a deeper connection with the work and a sense of involvement in the storytelling process.
• Creates a memorable experience: Symbolism can create a memorable experience for the reader or viewer by creating vivid imagery and emotional connections. This can help the work to be more impactful and to stick in the audience’s memory.
• Allows for multiple interpretations: Symbolism can allow for multiple interpretations of a work, which can create a sense of ambiguity or open-endedness. This can allow the audience to connect with the work in their own way and create their own personal meanings.
• Encourages critical thinking: Interpreting symbolism requires critical thinking skills, such as analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. This can help to develop these skills in readers and viewers, encouraging them to think more deeply and critically about the work and the world around them.

Symbolism can be a powerful tool for enhancing the impact and meaning of literature and other forms of art, while also engaging the audience and encouraging critical thinking.

Symbolism and Literary Theory

Symbolism is a literary device that can be analyzed through several literary theories. Here are some examples:

Literary Theory	Critique	Example
Formalism	Formalism is a literary theory that focuses on the form and structure of a literary work. When analyzing symbolism through formalism, the focus is on how the symbols are used within the structure of the work to create meaning.	Formalist analysis of symbolism in Emily Dickinson’s poetry emphasizes how her use of dashes and punctuation structures the symbols to convey isolation and introspection.
Psychoanalytic Theory	Psychoanalytic theory is a literary theory that focuses on the psychological motivations and experiences of the characters. When analyzing symbolism through psychoanalytic theory, the focus is on the unconscious desires and emotions that are represented by the symbols.	Psychoanalytic interpretation of symbolism in Shakespeare’s Macbeth explores how the dagger symbolizes Macbeth’s repressed desires and his descent into madness.
Reader-Response Theory	Reader-response theory is a literary theory that focuses on the response of the reader to a literary work. When analyzing symbolism through reader-response theory, the focus is on how the reader interprets and responds to the symbols in the work.	Reader-response analysis of symbolism in J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye examines how different readers interpret Holden Caulfield’s red hunting hat as a symbol of individuality or alienation based on their own perspectives.
Feminist Theory	Feminist theory is a literary theory that focuses on the representation of gender and sexuality in literature. When analyzing symbolism through feminist theory, the focus is on how the symbols reinforce or challenge gender roles and stereotypes.	Feminist critique of symbolism in Virginia Woolf’s Orlando explores how the transformation of the protagonist from male to female symbolizes the fluidity and constructed nature of gender.
Postcolonial Theory	Postcolonial theory is a literary theory that focuses on the representation of colonialism and its effects on culture and identity. When analyzing symbolism through postcolonial theory, the focus is on how the symbols represent cultural identity and resistance to colonialism.	Postcolonial analysis of symbolism in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart highlights how the yam symbolizes traditional Igbo culture and resists the colonial influence of the missionaries.

Suggested Readings

1. Abrams, M. H. A Glossary of Literary Terms. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1999.
2. Baldick, Chris. Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms. Oxford University Press, 2008.
3. Bottigheimer, Ruth B., editor. Fairy Tales and Society: Illusion, Allusion, and Paradigm. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1986.
4. Cirlot, J. E. A Dictionary of Symbols. Dover Publications, 2002.
5. Eagleton, Terry. Literary Theory: An Introduction. Blackwell, 2008.
6. Frye, Northrop. Anatomy of Criticism: Four Essays. Princeton University Press, 2000.
7. Freud, Sigmund. The Interpretation of Dreams. Basic Books, 2010.
8. Jung, Carl Gustav. Man and His Symbols. Doubleday, 1964.