Dictionary Symbols

Symbolism is “the art of thinking in images,” according to the Hindu philosopher Ananda K. Coomaraswamy. A symbol is a person, place, thing, or event that has a meaning of its own but suggests other meanings as well. A red paper heart or an expensive sports car probably suggests a meaning to us beyond the object they represent, but although most people around the world would probably give a similar interpretation to the red heart, different people from different cultures would give the sports car more diverse meanings. For some, it may represent wealth or social status, while for others it may express rebelliousness or even a celebration of life. Similarly, a small gift or token given by a close friend may have a huge symbolic and emotional significance for us, although others may just see the obvious object and nothing else. If the red heart may be seen as a “universal” symbol because its meaning is shared by many, the small gift would be an “internal” symbol.
In literature, sometimes authors create and use symbols that only have meaning inside the story, such as the white whale in Herman Melville’s Moby Dick, where the cetacean stands for the mystery of evil. Most universal symbols are “timeless objects” (Marc Saunier) that have been used by humans to teach, learn, and communicate since the dawn of time. Many authors will take advantage of this and use more conventional or traditional symbols that evoke explicit emotions and are associated to more specific meanings so that the ideas they want to express in a story are understood by a wider range of readers.
Categories:
- Colors
- Nature
- Directions
- Weather, seasons, time
- Animals
- Buildings and constructions
- Human body parts
- Clothing
- Objects
- Places and settings