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Made in China’. In our shrinking world, we frequently find this label stamped on our possessions, and for the majority of us, this label is synonymous with the manufacturing price advantage that China has over other countries. However, the label, ‘Made in England’, though similar to the former label, embodies a completely different mythology, a different set of social ideals and meanings. For some, this imprint glares disturbingly right back, carrying greater significance than merely information about where an object was manufactured. For one such Antiguan individual, Jamaica Kincaid, the words are physical manifestations of England’s ubiquitous, intangible presence in Antigua, constantly reminding her of a troubling familiarity with a ‘distant’ …show more content…
Throughout her essay, Jamaica Kincaid highlights this battle between the “idea of something and its reality” (724). She details her struggles to separate herself from British symbols subconsciously rooted in her way of life in Antigua. Be it her father’s “wrong hat for a hot climate,” eating an ‘English’ breakfast, wearing clothing made in England, or having three members of her family named after an English King, Kincaid finds English influences weaved intricately and oppressively into daily life (721). It does not matter whether she feels tired after eating so much food, or that her family members are “named after a man that they have never met,” this is the way things were done (722). To address the source of this loss of identity, Kincaid unearths her underlying contempt towards the English as a consequence of their hunger to rule, because they were “everywhere…in places where they were not welcome, in places they should not have been” (720). This description uncovers Kincaid’s resentment towards the English, who she believes have forced their way into Antiguan history, invading and polluting a land of natives. Despite trying to understand English symbols, in an attempt to distinguish between myths and reality, Kincaid may in fact find herself not getting any closer to truth, as Suzanne K. Langer suggests in her essay, “Signs and Symbols,” all human activity is “based on the appreciation and use of symbols” (Langer 526). The basic human trait consists of symbolic thinking; what we see is only a projection, an understanding, or a mental image of the world after data from our five senses have passed through the biological, linguistic and cultural filters of our
In the beginning, symbolism was used for a means of communication. The reason for this was because during this time most Native American’s were Illiterate. Instead of using letter’s in the alphabet, as we do today , they used pictures (Douglas 42). This came to become what we call symbolism.
This week’s articles carry a couple related, if not common, themes of imagined, if not artificial, constructs of race and identity. Martha Hodes’ article, “The mercurial Nature and Abiding Power of Race: A Transnational Family Story,” offers a narrative based examination of the malleable terms on which race was defined. To accomplish this she examines the story of Eunice Connolly and her family and social life as a window into understanding the changing dimensions of race in nineteenth-century America and the Caribbean, specifically New England and Grand Cayman. While Hodes’ article examines the construction of race in the Americas, Ali A. Mazrui’s piece, “The Re-Invention of Africa: Edward Sai, V. Y. Mudimbe, and Beyond,” looks at the construction of African identity. Although different in geographic loci, the two articles similarly examine the shaping influences of race and identity and the power held in ‘the Other’ to those ends.
A symbol is a person, object, or event that suggests more than its literal meaning. Symbols can be very useful in shedding light on a story, clarifying meaning that can’t be expressed with words. It may be hard to notice symbols at first, but while reflecting on the story or reading it a second time, the symbol is like a key that fits perfectly into a lock. The reason that symbols work so well is that we can associate something with a particular object. For example, a red rose symbolizes love and passion, and if there were red roses in a story we may associate that part of the story with love. Although many symbols can have simple meanings, such as a red rose, many have more complex meanings and require a careful reading to figure out its meaning. The first symbol that I noticed in Ethan Frome is the setting. It plays an important role in this story. The author spends much of the first few chapters describing the scene in a New England town Starkfield. When I think of a town called Starkfield, a gloomy, barren place with nothing that can grow comes to mind. As the author continues to describe this town, it just reinforces what I had originally thought.
Jamaica Kincaid in her essay “In History” describes how Antigua’s language, as part of cultural imperialism, was made inferior in favor of western languages. Columbus framed the unfamiliar environment of Antigua with things prominent in his thinking and his Spanish
The symbols that are used in literature can have a large impact on the story and what the reader pulls out from the story. If there was no symbol used in To Kill a Mockingbird, people would miss a lot of the story going on and they may not see the more innocent side of the story. Although symbols are used in many different forms, the one used in To Kill a Mockingbird made the story what it was. The mockingbird gave the story a whole different approach. By using a symbol in the story, the author was able to make th...
Symbols provide more meaning and deeper representation of an object, or even a character. Through the usage of symbols, readers can connect and understand a character and their thoughts and actions. Janie Crawford connects with nature on a personal level, which provides readers insight. Nature, a predominant symbol in Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, directly parallels Janie’s desires and her sense of identity.
Chapter three of the text, Inside Social Life by authors Cahill, Sandstrom and Froyum; discusses the importance of symbolism and how each individual within society comprehends the realities which surround them. Humans have the capacity to relate, internalize and interpret in their own words; the objects they visualize, smell, taste, hear and see on a daily basis. The chapter discusses how symbolism helps regulate human life and activity; alongside forming cohesion and stability within society. For example, if humans stayed at the level of sensation, experiencing everything around them; soon all would become overwhelmed and utterly distracted. (Sandstrom, 2014). This short paper will aim to critique and analyze author Sandstroms’ chapter on Symbols and the Creation of Reality. Discussed within the paper will be points which to the reader are deemed as ones of great value; in conjunction with points which may have brought the chapter to lose its major emphasis.
In her aggressive and expository essay, Kincaid successfully demonstrates through the use of several examples, that knowledge, which is a necessary precursor to power, is severely lacking in Antigua, which in turn limits the power Antiguans hold over their own society. Kincaid begins by pointing out to “you,” a tourist who is missing from Antigua in order to first make clear the reality that knowledge is not existent, valued, or accessible in Antigua. She illustrates “your” arrival, when she notes, “You are a tourist and you have not yet seen a school in Antigua, you have not yet seen the hospital in Antigua, you have not yet seen a public monument in Antigua.” But she abruptly interrupts this thought and continues in sarcastic and marked nonchalance, “what a beautiful island Antigua is—more beautiful than any of the other islands you have seen.” (3) Here, Kincaid demonstrates that knowledge is severely lacking or nonexistent in the land of Antigua by providing Knowledge is attained by learning information, data, and facts made available to children through education in schools.
Years ago, Sister Mary Corita Kent, a celebrated artist and educator of the 1960’s and 1970’s stated, “A painting is a symbol for the universe. Inside it, each piece relates to the other. Each piece is only answerable to the rest of that little world. So, probably in the total universe, there is that kind of total harmony, but we get only little tastes of it” (Lewis "Quotes from Women Artists"). Nowadays, a painting is not the main form of art humans appreciate. In fact, literature of all sorts can be considered a different form of art and often found in literature are symbols. A "symbol" is an object, person or action which represents an abstract idea (Warren “English 102”). In literature, a symbol or set of symbols can have a wide range of meanings. For example, color is a universal symbol; some may say it is a general symbol for life. However, each color separately can symbolize something different depending on the context. Analyzing five piece of literature for symbolism, one will be able to gain a deeper understating of symbols.
All through the novel there are symbols of
England. In separate sections he describes the masters, servants, and slaves of the island. In addition to Ligon’s interpretations of the physical and cultural characteristics of the “Negroes,” he offers personal experiences to illustrate the master-slave relationships that had evolved on Barbados
All forms of literature consist of patterns that can be discovered through critical and analytical reading, observing and comparing. Many patterns are discussed in the novel, How to Read Literature like a Professor, by Thomas C. Foster. Among these patterns, he discusses the use of symbolism and the representation something can have for a different, underlying aspect of a piece of literature. These symbols tend to have multiple meanings and endless interpretations depending on who is reading and analyzing them. No matter
...xtent will this essay bring about a change in Antigua? The Antiguan scene can only be modified by the government choosing to run the country in a more manner that will benefit everyone associated with Antigua, especially its natives. The native’s behaviours are related to their jealousy of tourists, and of the tourist’s ability to escape their own hometown to take a vacation. While a tourist can relate to the idea that the exhaustion felt after a vacation comes from dealing with the invisible animosity in the air between the natives and themselves, having this knowledge is almost as good as not having it, because there is nothing that the tourist, or the reader, can really DO about it! If Kincaid’s purpose is solely to make tourists aware of their actions, she has succeeded. If Kincaid’s purpose is to help Antigua, she may not have succeeded to the same magnitude.
3. Kincaid uses a spiteful tone throughout her piece, especially when she recalls seeing “Made in England written on everything, and to her, “those three words were felt as a burden” (3). In this quote, Kincaid views the words “Made in England” as an obligation or encumbrance. This comparison shows the hostility she holds towards England because she would not harbor these feelings of hate if England had benefitted her. In order to help express her idea that colonization suppresses the native culture, she uses this example from her childhood to show that she did not grow up with the culture of Antigua, but England’s instead. This culture and way of life forced onto her and Antigua was a result
A symbol is an object, action, or event that represents something or that creates a range of associations beyond itself. In literary works a symbol can express an idea, clarify meaning, or enlarge literal meaning. Select a novel or play and, focusing on one symbol, write an essay analyzing how that symbol functions in the work and what it reveals about the characters or themes of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot. (2009 Open-Ended Question for AP English Literature and Composition).