... portrays many heart wrenching themes, reinforced through strong symbols such as color, Hans' accordion, and books. These ideas are surround mortality, hope, and the power of words, are important to Zusak's novel and to society due to the way they connect with each other to help us understand character's lives and reflect on our own. The symbolism of color in The Book Thief was evident throughout ... half it explains how summer was going nicely for Liesel the German child with her childhood progressing colourfully, when in contrast the colors are symbolic of all the deaths occurring and ...

• Word Count: 1566
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... symbolism. There were symbols relating to Grace"s past, Codi's relationship with Hallie, and life. The references to bones in "Animal Dreams" were also symbols. The bones symbolize memory and death. For example, the "skeletons of cows" (7) in chapter two symbolize the memory of war and the Nazi's ruthlessness. In this instance, the bones were buried and ... dug up at a later time, which then makes the farmers remember and even benefit from ... , she is trying to forget her stillbirth. The bones that spilled out of the child's body portray its death and forces Codi to relive that memory...

• Word Count: 257
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: High School

... his best-known short stories, The Masque of the Red Death. There are endless examples and interpretations of symbolism in this story. It must be studied at a literal and allegorical level in order to be truly understood. The major symbols in this story are the ebony clock, Prince Prospero, and the seven colored rooms. First of all, this huge ebony clock is found in the ... blue, which represents birth. The purple room is next and that suggests the beginning of growth. After this room comes the green and orange rooms, which are symbols of life and the progression through youth. White com...

• Word Count: 573
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... are considered a symbol of life. The sun, a circle, or children are a few examples that writers most commonly use. Barbra Kingsolver wrote the book The Bean Trees and uses many symbols for life. She not only uses symbols throughout her book, but also throughout each chapter. In chapter 8, titled "The Miracle of Dog Doo Park", she brings life out of many unexpected places, including ... , expecting a regular green park. She comes across a park filled with nothing but dried up plants. What she finds in that park and other places as well is the best thing of all: life. Through the skillful ...

• Word Count: 1076
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... not able to write anymore since this snow of the summit restricts his eyesight. Ernest Hemingway uses two animals, which are the leopard and the hyena, as symbols around which the stories revolve. These animals symbolize the psychological state and emotional desires of the main character in the stories. The story starts with the discovery of a leopard's carcass at the peak of Kilimanjaro ... death. Hemingway demonstrates his artistic talent by portraying the story of a writer's life of self-examination, revealing his own struggles in life, and constructs depth and relevance through use ...

• Word Count: 1114
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography

... in the house B. Setting occurs in an hour II. Chopin employs imagery to indicate Louise's realization A. Spring season indicates a new beginning B. Positive sensory details indicate a positive change III. Chopin utilizes symbols to illustrate Louise's circumstance A. Dead husband symbolizes a new life for Louise IV. Chopin uses irony for a unique ending to the story A. Louise dies at her husband's reappearance The oppression of ... able to illustrate the negative effects of living in a society in which women were subordinate to their husbands. This paper will examine how Chopin reveals ...

• Word Count: 802
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... all these words" (Exodus 24:6-8 KJV). Once the people of Israel said they would obey, Moses used the oxen blood to sprinkle onto the altar and the people as a blessing. In these times, sacrificing an animal was a sacred act. Using the blood of a sacrificed animal was a distinctive way for ... of an animal was considered an abomination. As said by the Dictionary of mythology Folklore and Symbols by Gertrude Jobes, "In Christian tradition, martyrdom, Christ. Ancient Hebrews believed it was the seat of life to God, and for this reason taboo as food" (Jobes 226). Having the blood of an ... ...

• Word Count: 1674
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... Winton is a novel where not all meanings are understood at a literal level. In the novel, one of the most significant literary devices used by Winton is symbolism, which plays upon the aesthetic sensibilities harbored by the text's audience and provides insight and deeper understanding to the themes of the novel. The house on Cloudstreet itself, the river, the symbolic representations of the Lambs ... is the Aboriginal man who invites him to go home. Therefore, symbolism is used by Winton to affirm the importance of family in life, as it is portrayed positively in the novel. Finally, Wi...

• Word Count: 1957
• Approx Pages: 8

... Lord of the Flies, by William Golding encapsulates the symbolism water throughout the story. This story demonstrates how without civilization we as a people become savages. Golding truly gets his point across in this anecdote. His argument is very convincing; he proves his outlook on people. He has a group of boys struggling between good and evil. In this intriguing yet horrid account of ... saying this it, shows death comes from the water too. Golding's symbolism of water as death is depicted when some of the young boys within the story die. Each time a young boy dies "the sea breathed...

• Word Count: 659
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... Story of an Hour- The story of James Joyce's "The Dead,"" consists of many symbols and ironies. Kate and Julie Morkan, two elderly sisters who live with their spinster niece, are holding their annual Christmas dance. Their married nephew Gabriel Conroy, attends with his wife, and delivers an after-dinner speech. Among the guest is a tenor, Bartell D' Arcy, who sings after much good natured ... has dulled Gabriel's possibility of any productive interaction with the other human beings around him, and he has joined the ranks of the contemporary walking dead. The thing that stands out the m...

• Word Count: 997
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... 's life. The river also symbolizes his spiritual awakening, which makes him become a new person. Finally the river symbolizes his Fate, which changes his view on life, and he finally conquers him self. The first Symbolism of the river is "Reflection". The river is like a mirror to Siddhartha. Siddhartha has left his family in his youth so he could find a way to give ... soul" (89)! He wanted to destroy himself. Siddhartha becomes so confuse while looking into this river and reflecting back on his life that he feels that the only way to get peace in his life now would be death. The Second...

• Word Count: 702
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... the medium. A good example of this, which is a smiley. A common symbol with the function to test an individual's feeling or trait These symbols are widely used on social networking sites like Facebook and Hyves but have now lost their meaning completely opposed. These so-called emoticons are often used for completely different purposes than initially meant to. As with ... ) ethnographers must incorporate the Internet and CMC into their research to adequately understand social life in contemporary society. " In the book Ethnography on the Internet Robert V. contributes Kozinets innovative ...

• Word Count: 1233
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... Between my hooked head, and hooked feet", tells the reader to be on guard. "Hooked" gives us an image of power; that the hawk is able to hook anything that it wants. Symbolism too, is used by both poets. The two birds; "Hawk" and "Vulture", could be seen as symbols of heroism. The two ... become heroes when the take flight. Both prey catching birds; are strong, brave, noble and powerful. "The wood" which the hawk sits on ... could be seen as a representation of life and fertility; his life. High up in ... in the poem; "I", is repeated throughout the poem, emphasizes the hawk's proud at...

• Word Count: 1305
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... his own personal mythology, for, as he would say: "Must create a system or be enslaved by another man's". Blake thought the Anglican Church corrupted and cynical - that it made the lives for those who were poor, a living hell. He was very concerned with working class children. He found their ... the poem, he tries to hint that his parents are not entirely to blame; they are in the clever hands of the manipulative Church and State: "And are gone to praise God & his Priest & King, Who make up the heaven of our misery.". As the titles of the two poetry ... from poem 1 is more nave and in...

• Word Count: 2076
• Approx Pages: 8
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

In the short story ùning of the Bingo Game,?Ralph Ellison uses symbolism to further the meaning of the story. Three symbols used by Ellison are the bingo wheel, the white beam of light, and the train. All of these symbols display the message that the black man, (the protagonist) has no control over his life. ... white man controls everything, no matter what. Despite the fact that the white beam of light starts out small, it expands to gain more power and control. This beam of light represents the white man influence over the lives of others. The particles of dust are an example of the s...

• Word Count: 525
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... meaning than what appears to be the what is going on.. Symbols in this story are contradictory. The main character is also the narrator who tells the story after he has become an educated adult. In Ralph Ellison's "Battle Royal" symbolism is used in the narrator's dream of his Grandfather to make ... him realize what he would have to achieve and strive for to have a successful life. The Grandfather had been a meek person all his life. ... as a peasant like he did. He wanted his family to get their education. This would help them interpret the situations they encounter during their lives ...

• Word Count: 1010
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... others to make these difficult decisions for us. In this short story, "Hills like White Elephants", Hemingway relies on the use of symbolism throughout the story to describe a very complex issue that has encountered Jig and The American, the main characters in the story. Though the text can leave many unanswered questions, the dialogue is very detailed in trying to ... is unable to make the decision. An important factor in this story is how the author uses two specific symbols to portray the couple's indecisiveness, the two railroad tracks and the alcohol consumption. "The station was b...

• Word Count: 814
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... – "a comfortable, roomy armchair. Into this she sank" (Chopin 107). The youth of Mrs. Mallard and the roomy armchair are both symbols of relief from living a life of self-sacrifice. In addition to symbolism, Chopin also beautifully writes using imagery. Imagery is a literary tool in which words or phrases are described using the five senses. Throughout "The Story ... of an Hour" imagery is utilized to bring light to and vividly describe Louise Mallard's life of self-sacrifice ... death. "The Story of an Hour" is a brilliantly composed selection of literature which sheds new light on ...

• Word Count: 1729
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... main character, his strange quirks, accidental encounters and progression of change through motifs and symbols, aides the reader in understanding his views of travel and change. In her novel, The Accidental Tourist, Anne Tyler uses various motifs and symbols to show Macon's gradual transition from darkness to light, or from blindness to sight. Tyler's use of symbolism helps the reader to understand Macon's withdrawal from ... society and lack of awareness of the world around him. Witness, Macon's house as a tomb-hosting the shell of a person he currently is ... are forced into travel, ...

• Word Count: 1496
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... windows in our homes to view the current weather and nature. Most of us keep our windows clean and operational so we can enjoy fresh air, a cool breeze, the singing of birds or just the view of a storm. A window, nature and a passing storm were symbols used by Chopin in "The Story of an Hour ... ." The view from Mrs. Mallard's window, of the changing weather and surrounding nature was used by Chopin, to show a reader the protagonist's changing internal outlook on ... a seat in an armchair that we learn is "facing an open window." In a metaphor of symbolism, Mrs. Mallard begins to examine...

• Word Count: 496
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... someone who has no faith in Jesus. He says, "Jesus thown everything off balance - O'Connor repeatedly incorporates faith into her works. Animal symbolism is another literary device used my Flannery O'Connor. A monkey, a pig, and a cat are all symbols and incorporated into and involved in the ironies of A Good Man is Hard to Find. A very symbolic bull is what the plot of Greenleaf revolves around. The ... that best reveals what we are essentially - She incorporates numerous symbols, in animal form and other forms such as names, objects, and actions in each story. Her stories both show ch...

• Word Count: 724
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... nine years old." (Guterson, 110). This description of the "hollow" cedar tree foreshadows Ishmael's state of mind after the war, a feeling of emptiness, and loneliness, an exception, someone who stands out in the rest of the people, his stumped arm. Also portrays Ishmael's feeling of being uncompleted. This also ... moderate tides, thick fog the S.S West Corona... that morning , in heavy fog had radioed the lighthouse for assistance the corona was out of lane and would have to dogleg to the northeast, bisecting ship channel bank"(Guterson, 335). This signifies how nature played its part ...

• Word Count: 1696
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... mixed up values. The misfit has therefore concluded that there is "no real pleasure in life" (O"Conner 142). The misfit symbolizes evil that comes from confusion and lack of positive direction. In "The Shawl" word choice and symbolism play a vital role. The shawl becomes the main symbol that helps develop each of the characters values that are expressed in desperate times. In "A Good ... Man is Hard to Find" word choice does not play as vital a role as the overall interaction between the characters. The symbols are equally important in showing the characters ... values. The actions of ...

• Word Count: 910
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... falls into the Gothic category. Bringing forth the symbolism of death is a major part of this writing. All of the characters in "The Fall of the House of Usher" are linked to death; by physical objects or by other people. There are no symbols of good. The physical aspect of the House of ... Poe, 182). After Usher finally speaks about what he knew, a figure of Madeline appears to them, "...but then without those doors there did stand the lofty and enshrouded figure of the lady Madeline of Usher" (Poe, 182). She came back to receive Roderick's soul that had been lost because of her non-exi...

• Word Count: 1415
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... , his body coiled up in pain. When he forced himself to move again, deep hollows were left in the ground; they filled with water and became lakes- (RS). Gertrude Jobes implies that the symbolism of the crater, lake and water are the sources that contribute to the fertilization of the landscape that the snake's body is creating. Now that the water has settled ... of animal life. Human life was given when the storms ended. In the portion of the myth there are many symbols that need to be identified. All the components of a thunderstorm, the thunder, the lightning, and the rain, lead to the...

• Word Count: 1415
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School