Dobby
Young Armadillo
Posts: 80
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Post by Dobby on Jun 10, 2011 15:30:15 GMT -5
Like, in order to search for symbolism, there's kind of this underlying agreement that exists: the author has placed something here intentionally and it's my job to find it. I disagree with the first part of that, as I don't believe an author has the ability to intentionally place meaning in their work, since language is so unreliable. What about common literary archetypes? There are certain archetypes, such as martyrs, the devil figure, the christ figure, certain colors, and objects that have the same meaning in many cultures. For example, lions represent courage in many cultures, and when you encounter a lion in a novel (for example, the Harry Potter series), you know that represents braveness. I agree that language can sometimes be unreliable, but I think symbols are universal, and that's why they're used to convey ideas. |
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Post by cyanea on Jun 10, 2011 17:36:11 GMT -5
When used sparingly, it's alright and can even be a fun mental exercise from time to time.
When it's the central force of your entire novel, it wears. Quickly. I'm looking at you, Animal Farm.
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Umbvix
Young Armadillo
SCHLURP :B
Posts: 64
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Post by Umbvix on Jun 10, 2011 22:57:43 GMT -5
I love symbolism, but I hate being told to search it out. I feel like it's something that should be discovered on your own. If you don't notice the symbolism, it can be a shame, but shoving the point in someone's face can ruin the book for the student. Not that I'd know.
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Post by Fuck Yeah Dion on Jun 11, 2011 1:01:29 GMT -5
Like, in order to search for symbolism, there's kind of this underlying agreement that exists: the author has placed something here intentionally and it's my job to find it. I disagree with the first part of that, as I don't believe an author has the ability to intentionally place meaning in their work, since language is so unreliable. What about common literary archetypes? There are certain archetypes, such as martyrs, the devil figure, the christ figure, certain colors, and objects that have the same meaning in many cultures. For example, lions represent courage in many cultures, and when you encounter a lion in a novel (for example, the Harry Potter series), you know that represents braveness. I agree that language can sometimes be unreliable, but I think symbols are universal, and that's why they're used to convey ideas. Symbols are not at all universal. I'd go as far as to say there exists not a single universal symbol. |
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Post by Vergissmeinnicht on Jun 13, 2011 12:25:29 GMT -5
I love symbolism if it is not...relied on way too heavily to convey the themes and isn't used as some kind of excuse to avoid making your characters actually human, which I feel happens in the western canon too often. (i.e.; all the symbolism in The Scarlet Letter)
Also I think that poetry really should use some kind of symbolism. It's a way of condensing a much bigger idea into the short form literature of the genre.
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