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Chapter 12 Is that a Symbol?

Chapter 12 Is that a Symbol?. Isabel Morano 4 th Period 9/21/11. What is a symbol?. A symbol is something tangible that is used to represent something intangible , like an idea, feeling, or religion.

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Chapter 12 Is that a Symbol?

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  1. Chapter 12Is that a Symbol? Isabel Morano 4th Period 9/21/11

  2. What is a symbol? • A symbol is something tangible that is used to represent something intangible, like an idea, feeling, or religion. • There are plenty of symbols referenced everyday. Like “a white flag means, I give up, don’t shoot. Or it means we come in peace” (Foster 98).

  3. Symbols can have more than one meaning • People seem to think that a symbol stands for one thing and one thing only. • If a symbol only has one meaning only, than “it’s not symbolism, it’s allegory” (Foster 98).

  4. Allegory? • Yes. Allegory is when something represents something else on a one-on-one basis. • Allegory’s job is to convey one message. • It gets you “to get thepoint, not apoint.” (Foster 98)

  5. How is a symbol different? • Instead of meaning one thing, symbols usually have “a range of possible meanings and interpretations” (Foster 98). • In fact, some symbols used by authors could have a nearly infinite amount of meanings • The meaning of a symbol is never just sitting on the surface of the text, you have to dig deeper to find it.

  6. But symbols are only objects, right? • Wrong! “Many readers expect [symbols] to be objects and images rather than events or actions” but this is not the case at all (Foster 105). Many times, symbols can be shown through actions as well as images. • For example, putting your hand over your heart during the pledge or anthem can be a symbol of patriotism or respect for your country. • Even though it’s an action and not an object, like the US flag, it still carries the same symbolism .

  7. But how do I find all this symbolism in literature? How to I add it to things I write? • It may seem hard at first, but symbolism isn’t that difficult to understand once you get the hang of it. • “The more you exercise symbolic imagination, the better and quicker it works” (Foster 107). • Brainstorm! Takes notes and break down sentences, try to think into every word the author uses. • But the most important thing is to remember that you’re trying to find out what the symbol means to you, not the author.

  8. Are there symbols in Great Expectations? • Sure are. Settings are almost always symbols in Great Expectations. One example of this are the marshes. Pip brought files to a convict and almost got killed by Orlick in the marshes, making them seem dangerous. • Dickens uses the marshes to symbolize danger and uncertainty in his writing, and uses it to set a dark, stressful tone. • As Pip is looking at the mist, it states that, “it seemed to [Pip’s} oppressed conscience like a phantom devoting me to the Hulks” (Dickens 15)”.

  9. But can symbols exist in real life? • Sure they can! Symbols aren’t confined simply to literature. • For example, In America our national bird, the bald eagle, is a symbol for freedom, liberty, grace, strength, and many more.

  10. Works Cited Dickens, Charles. Great expectations. New York: Bantam Dell, 1986. Print. Foster, Thomas C. How to Read Literature Like a Professor. New York: Harper-Collins Publishers, Inc., 2003. Print.

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