Symbolism & Allegory

Symbolism

The use of symbols (concrete objects) to represent abstract ideas and emotions Language itself is a system of spoken or written symbols by which we communicate. Every word is a symbol; the five letters that form the word 'chair' represent a sound as well as a physical object. In writing, symbolism is the use of a word, a phrase, or a description, which represents a deeper meaning than the words themselves. This kind of extension of meaning can transform the written word into a very powerful instrument.
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Religious Symbolism

Religious symbolism is the use of text, images, procedures, or actual physical objects to represent an idea or belief. The most common example is the use of objects to symbolize the faith itself, as in the use of a cross to represent Christianity, or the Star of David to represent Judaism.

Political Symbolism

Political symbolism is often used to represent a political standpoint. It can take the form of banners, acronyms, pictures, flags, mottos, and many other things. For example, the Canadian flag contains a maple leaf, which has long been a symbol of things Canadian. The two bars represent 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, the eagle, the iron cross, and the dual lightning bolts (the symbol of the SS) pictured at the left.

Color Symbolism

Simple colors can also be symbolic, depending on your location, or the context in which they are used. Red, white and blue are symbolic of all things American. Green has come to represent anything which is environmentally friendly. Colors can represent different things depending on where you live. For example, in Asian countries, red symbolizes happiness, marriage, and prosperity; in some countries the color of mourning is white.

Advertising Symbolism

Just as in any media, symbolism is used extensively in advertising. A good example, with which you are certainly familiar, is the use of actors dressed in white lab coats who are discussing the merits of a product in a laboratory setting. These symbols of the medical profession are meant to imply that the product has been approved by and has the support of doctors or medical scientists.

Literary Symbolism

In literature, symbolism is used to provide meaning to the writing beyond what is actually being described. The plot and action that take place in a story can be thought of as one level, while the symbolism of certain things in the writing act on another level to enhance the story.

Symbolism can take place by having the theme of a story represented on a physical level. A simple example might be the occurrence of a storm at at critical point, when there is conflict or high emotions. The storm might symbolize these. Similarly a transition from day to night, or spring to winter, could symbolize a move from goodness to evil, or hope to despair. A river in a scene could represent the flow of life, from birth to death. Flowers can symbolize youth or beauty.

Not everything in a story is necessarily symbolic. A garden landscape is just a garden ... until it is contrasted with a bustling city, at which point the garden could symbolize tranquility, peace, or escape.

Symbols in Literature

In The Lord of the Flies, Ralph with his conch shell represents order and democracy, while Jack symbolizes savagery and anarchy. The island itself symbolizes the world in which we live, and the actions of the characters are symbolic of the way different people conduct their lives. The beast represents the darker side of human nature.

The play MacBeth by William Shakespeare uses blood, both real and imagined, as a symbol of guilt, both of MacBeth and Lady MacBeth. Another symbol used in the play is a raven, which usually represents ill fortune.

In the novel Animal Farm, the entire story is a symbol for the evils of communism, with the main animal characters representing key figures in the Russian revolution. The novel can be read entirely as a children's story, but when you come to realize what the various elements and characters in the story symbolize, the novel takes on a whole new meaning. That's why this particular work has become such a classic. This kind of story is called an allegory.

Allegory

Allegory is a form of extended metaphor, in which objects, persons, and actions in a narrative, are equated with the meanings that lie outside the narrative itself. The underlying meaning has moral, social, religious, or political significance, and characters are often personifications of abstract ideas as charity, greed, or envy. Thus an allegory is a story with two meanings, a literal meaning and a symbolic meaning.
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Symbolism versus Allegory

A symbol is a word, place, character, or object that means something beyond what it is on a literal level. Symbolism is the act of using a word, place, character, or object in 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 we understand that this object also represents the act of coming to a complete stop--an idea hard to encompass briefly without some sort of symbolic substitute. An object, a setting, or even a character in literature can represent another, more general idea. Note, however, that symbols function perfectly well in isolation from other symbols as long as the reader already knows their assigned meaning. Allegory, however, does not work that way; allegory requires symbols working in conjunction with each other.

Symbolism versus Allegory

An allegory involves using many interconnected symbols or allegorical figures in such as way that in nearly every element of the narrative has a meaning beyond the literal level, i.e., everything in the narrative is a symbol that relates to other symbols within the story. The allegorical story, poem, or play can be read either literally or as a symbolic statement about a political, spiritual, or psychological truth. The word allegory derives from the Greek allegoria ("speaking otherwise"):The term loosely describes any story in verse or prose that has a double meaning. This narrative acts as an extended metaphor in which the plot or events reveal a meaning beyond what occurs in the text, creating a moral, spiritual, or even political meaning. The act of interpreting a story as if each object in it had an allegorical meaning is called allegoresis.