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SYMBOLISM TRANSCRIPT
SLIDE 1
Welcome back to ENC 1102. I’m Dr. Michael Baker, and today we will be talking about symbols (and
literary symbolism).
SLIDE 2
Today’s lecture will have two main parts. First, we will discuss the two levels on which you should
interpret a symbol. Then, we will discuss the three types of symbols that you will encounter in literature.
Now, some of the information for today’s lecture can be found in Chapter 5 (which starts on page 205 in
the textbook), but I will also add in some information from other sources. Therefore, you will be able to
learn something from both the textbook and this lecture. Also note that Chapter 5 discusses figurative
language, which we won’t cover in this lecture; you might want to read that section more carefully.
SLIDE 3
As our textbook says on page 205, “A symbol is something that represents something else.” In this
sense, a symbol is at the same time both itself and a representative of something – or someone - else.
This means that when a literary work uses symbols, there are usually at least two levels of interpretation
you should consider: the literal level (that is, what the text actually says), and the symbolic level (that is,
what the text “means”).
Let’s see symbolism in action with a very famous poem by the poet Robert Frost…
SLIDES 4 and 5
“The Road Not Taken”
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that, the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
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And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
SLIDE 6
Now let’s consider this “road not taken.” The road in this poem is commonly thought to be a symbol, so
let’s think about the two levels of interpretation for this poem. Literally, what does the poem say? What
is happening? Take a moment to summarize the poem for yourself; feel free to pause the video for a
minute if you need. [SHORT PAUSE]
On the surface, this poem seems to be about a guy going for a walk in the woods, right? He is walking on
a road (or maybe a path) and comes to a “fork in the road” – a place where the road divides. He looks in
one direction, then in the other as he tries to decide which way to go. Both paths look nice, but one
seems to be a little grassier – that is, it has not had as much foot traffic as the other one. Ultimately, he
decides to take that path. He tells himself he can come back and try the other path some day in the
future, but part of him recognizes that there is a good chance he will never have the chance to do that.
Many of us have probably been in a similar situation. Have you ever taken a walk through a state park,
or maybe walked on part of the Appalachian Trail? If so, you have probably come to a place like this, and
had to decide which path to take. Like the speaker in this poem, you might tell yourself that you’ll take
one path today, and then come back some day to take the other one – but we often don’t do that.
Sometimes we can’t – we might not even be able to find our way back to that same fork in the road.
So, this poem is pretty “accessible” – the literal level is obvious, and it describes a situation many of us
can relate to. But if we assume that this road is a symbol, we have two questions to answer: what does
the road symbolize, and how does that affect our interpretation of the poem? Again, pause this video
for a minute and think about your answers to these questions. [SHORT PAUSE]
Have you ever heard that song “Life Is a Highway”? We often talk about life as a journey, or about how
someone has lost her way or is going down the wrong path. The road in this poem can easily function in
this same way. If so, what does the fork in the road represent? Well, in the poem, the guy has to decide
which way to go, so this fork probably represents a decision of some sort – probably a life-changing
decision (after all, in line 15 the speaker says, “I doubted if I should ever come back”).
So, what are some life decisions that people have to make? For many of you right now, you have to
think about what your major will be – and by choosing one career path, you’re turning away from
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others. In fact, many readers think that this poem is really about Robert Frost’s own decision to become
a poet, and that is certainly possible.
But, the poem would seem to fit many other life decisions, too. What about relationships? If your
boyfriend proposes to you, do you say yes – or do you say no? Or, if you’re dating someone, should you
propose or not? We all encounter a lot of important decisions in life, and just like the speaker in the
poem we don’t know which “path” would be the better one to take. We have to make a decision, go
with it – and face the fact that we often can’t “go back” to that same decision to try out the other
option.
Doesn’t this poem beautifully capture the moments of decision we all face? This type of insight into life
is one of the reasons people read literature.
Now, let’s talk about some of the types of symbols you might encounter…
SLIDE 7
There are three main categories of symbols: universal, cultural, and literary. The textbook uses the
terms archetype and traditional, but I like the labels “universal” and “cultural.” Here’s why:
SLIDE 8
Universal symbols are cross-cultural. That means that people from all over the world and throughout
time tend to recognize certain things as symbolic. This is because universal symbols tend to be drawn
from the natural world, and they are things that everyone experiences and is familiar with.
For example, what do you think a sunrise represents? Well, in our lives it signifies the start of a new day,
right? It’s a beginning of sorts. Thus, it can represent things like a new start, or a new birth. Similarly, a
sunset represents an ending – or perhaps death. The seasons tend to have certain things associated with
them, too. Spring can represent new life; summer the prime of life; autumn is often equated with old
age; winter can represent death – after all, many trees don’t have leaves in the winter, some animals
hibernate, and so on.
Another common universal symbol is the forest. The symbolic connection here isn’t as obvious as it is for
a sunrise, perhaps, but once you hear it you will recognize the connection. The forest is usually
associated with the unknown. Think about life a hundred (or more) years ago – forests were different
than what many of us know them as today. It was easy to get lost; a dense forest could limit your
visibility to a very small area. You wouldn’t know if a wild animal or bandits might be behind the next
tree. You might not even know what was on the other side of the forest, because the trees might go on
for a hundred miles or more. Think back to the poem we just read: how perfect is the forest setting?
Could Frost have written about coming to an intersection in a new city? Sure, but since the forest is
already associated with the unknown, that setting adds extra power to the fact that the speaker really
doesn’t know which path he should take. He can’t see the future, so he doesn’t know which option is
better.
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So pay attention to the details an author chooses. They just might be symbols that can give you a deeper
understanding of the text.
SLIDE 9
Now, the second type of symbol is the cultural symbol – or, as some say, the traditional or conventional
symbol. These symbols are ones that a large group of people agree upon – so, Americans agree that
apple pie means “all American,” and many westerners (such as Americans, and many Europeans) and
other Christians agree that a lamb often represents Jesus. That’s because in the Bible, Jesus is referred
to as the “Lamb of God.” So, in a painting or in a work of literature, if you see a lamb you should at least
consider whether or not the painter or author is referencing Jesus. A lamb does not always represent
Jesus, but it often does.
But it is important to note that a cultural symbol does not always transfer from one place to another,
like a universal symbol does. For example, in the United Kingdom, a rose often represents England.
When we see a rose over here, however, we don’t usually think of “England.”
You should also note that colors often have very specific associations for different cultures. For example,
let’s think of the color white in the United States. You might think of things like purity, or wedding
dresses. But in traditional China, a bride does not wear white – she wears red. In fact, the Chinese often
wear white to funerals!
One thing that helps readers out, though, is that most of the literature that we read today comes from
“western” cultures, so we have a large pool of shared images. Even in England, for example, a rose often
symbolizes love; we might miss a possible political reading of a poem by not associating a rose with
England, but we will fully understand a romantic poem that uses a rose as a symbol.
But talking about a rose brings up a great point I should make about cultural symbols…
SLIDE 10
And that is that cultural symbols can be very complex. Take a look at the American flag, for instance.
When used as a symbol, what does this flag represent? Take a couple moments to think of a few
answers… [SHORT PAUSE]
You might have thought of words (or phrases) like freedom, or perhaps democracy. Or, you might say
that the flag represents the United States of America itself – after all, it marks a place as a U.S. territory.
We can go deeper and say that the 13 stripes represent the original 13 colonies, and that the 50 stars
represent the 50 states (that’s why our flag changes whenever we add a new state, by the way). Some
people even suggest that the colors represent things, such as red standing for the blood of our soldiers
who have fought for our freedom. So this one flag can mean a lot of different things, depending on who
you ask or on the situation.
It’s good to keep in mind, however, that most of these associations are all very cultural things. After all,
in certain parts of the world, the American flag represents things like oppression; not everybody loves us
as much as we love ourselves.
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Now, there is one final type of symbol we should discuss, and it is the most complex of all…
SLIDE 11
The literary symbol. More so than universal or cultural symbols, literary symbols rely on context. This is
because literary symbols are used to symbolize – or, represent – specific things in specific works. They
may or may not be used in that same way anywhere else. To demonstrate the complexity of literary
symbols, and the importance of context, I’ve chosen two passages that actually utilize widely known
cultural symbols:
“My love is like a red, red rose” and “Achilles is a lion.”
Now, in the first example, we probably read that line and immediately think, “Aw, how sweet.” After all,
roses often symbolize love – roses are beautiful; they’re also red, which we say is the color of passion.
What else do we know about roses? Well, actually, they are a bit… “dangerous.” There is an old saying
(and a song) that says, “Every rose has its thorn.” You can get pricked when picking a rose. So, to know
for certain whether it’s a good thing or a bad thing that the speaker’s love is “like a red, red rose,” we
need more information. If you read this poem, you’ll see several more positive things: “my love is like a
melody that’s sweetly played in tune,” she very “fair” (which means pretty), and so on. So here, at least,
it’s a good thing – but we couldn’t know for sure until we looked at the other details in the poem.
In the second example, we have the poet Homer calling the warrior Achilles a lion. This comparison is in
the epic poem The Iliad, about the fall of the ancient city of Troy. Now, what comes to mind when you
think of a lion? Well… they are strong, fierce, and (for some odd reason) called “the King of the Jungle” –
and many royal families in the past have used a lion as their symbol. There are certainly a lot of reasons
a warrior might want to be called a “lion.” But, lions are often associated with something else: pride. In
fact, a group of lions is called a pride of lions. And there’s a saying that makes this even more
unflattering: “Pride goes before the fall.” It’s fair to ask whether or not ancient Greeks had these same
negative associations with lions, but for now let’s just focus on the fact that there are certainly multiple
ways that this line could be interpreted – perhaps Achilles is a fierce, regal warrior, or maybe he’s a
prideful jerk. OR… what if he’s both?
Writers are aware that many symbols have multiple layers, so it’s always good to see if an author uses a
particularly rich symbol in order to suggest both positive and negative attributes. What you will need to
do is to read the whole text closely, and pay attention to the details. Look for other hints to see what the
author seems to be suggesting with the symbol.
SLIDE 12
Hey, it’s time for a quick pop-up “quiz”! What are three types of symbols? For the first one, think really
big. Then go smaller, and then even smaller. We’ll go over the answer on the next slide.
Also, what are some possible interpretations of Frost’s poem “The Road Not Taken”? Remember, there
are at least two levels of interpretation. Also, what extra depth is added to the poem by setting it in the
woods? [SHORT PAUSE]
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SLIDE 13
Alright, now for the official review. Today, we talked about two levels for interpreting symbols: the
literal level, and the symbolic level. In Frost’s poem, we literally have a guy in the woods, but the
situation seems more broadly applicable – the speaker could be any of us at a major “crossroads” in our
lives, a big decision we need to make. (Oh, and the forest setting is extra cool because it symbolizes the
unknown.)
We then talked about the three different types of symbols: the universal (which basically everyone
agrees what these symbols mean), the cultural (which people in a given culture tend to agree on what
they mean), and the literary (which a single author might have developed for his or her own symbolic
purposes).
The important thing to remember for symbols – always look for evidence in the text that suggests what
a potential symbol might represent.
SLIDE 14
The main sources for this lecture were our Norton textbook, and the Poems volume of Norton’s
anthology called The Seagull Reader.