" 'They [fallen dominos] look like dead bodies' "(Zusak 410). Noticed Kurt from Markus Zusak's The Book Thief. Kurt was using the dominos to symbolize something other than what the eyes see, the front cover of the book utilizes this technique as well. Within just the one picture on the front cover lies a whole new understanding of the book. The front cover of the book explains, shows, and foreshadows events in the book. The cover of The Book Thief holds symbolism in the way you see the dominos, the pushing over of the dominos, and even the title of the book.
A title of a book gives you an idea of what that book is about, The Book Thief is no different except that it tells you other things as well. The way the title is presented, it looks like it was painted onto the book. The book thief, Liesel, uses paint as she learns how to read. This is instrumental in the book because without Liesel's love of words there would not be a story. Zusak writes, "The scrawled words of practice stood magnificently on the wall by the stairs, jagged and childlike and sweet. They looked on as both the hidden jew and the girl slept, hand to shoulder"(241). The "painted-on look" of the title connects Max Vandenburg, the hidden Jew, who also used paint (to cover up Hitler's worlds). The narrator describes it, "There were the erased pages of Mein Kampf gagging, suffocating under the paint as they turned" (Zusak 237). Besides the look of the title, the color also suggests another aspect of these characters. The bold white is the color of purity and innocence ("Color White"). A pure Jew who has done nothing to deserve his discrimination and an innocent girl with a love of words shine bright in the book, just as the title stands out on the cover.
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...ler's gaze, repeating his sentences, his paragraphs, his opus?" (Zusak 375-376).
Symbolism is not just within the pages of The Book Thief, but also on the cover in the title, the physical appearance of the dominos, and the inevitable falling of the dominos. Without even opening the book you can tell that its plotline will not end happily. After reading the book, the cover opens your eyes to a new understanding. The publishers of The Book Thief did not just pick a random picture for this books cover, they choose a picture that would tell a story of its own, a story that would enhance the written word.
Works Cited
“Color White.” Emil Gems. Amerindea. June 2003. Web. 7 August 2013.Works Cited
Neuffer, Scott. “Dark and Light Symbolism in Literature” Classroom.com. Synonym. 2013. Web. 10 Jan. 2014.
Zusak, Markus. The Book Thief. Random House, Inc. 2005. Print.
Symbolism In "The Things They Carried" In Tim O'Brien's story "The Things They Carried" we see how O'Brien uses symbolism in order to indirectly give us a message and help us to connect to what the soldiers are thinking and feeling. During a war, soldiers tend to take with them items from home, kind of as a security blanket. The items they normally take with them tend to reveal certain characteristics of their personality. Henry Dobbins is the guy who loves to eat, so he made sure he took some extra food. Ted Lavender was the scaredy cat of the group, so he carried tranquilizers with him.
Throughout the film, Stranger than Fiction, director, Marc Forster conveys idealistic concepts through the use of symbolism and imagery. Alluding to René Magritte's Son of Man, the green apple was a prevalent symbol in the film -- often being held or eaten by Harold Crick. It exemplified the idea that the beguiling sight of that which is hidden by what is visible was sought after by Harold. This motif is portrayed when Harold abruptly stopped everything in pursuit of determining how he would die after hearing the narrator express that a small act “ … would result in his imminent death” (Stranger than Fiction), therefore becoming enmeshed in his efforts to see what is hidden by what is visible. In doing so, Harold disregarded the miniscule feats that could potentially change his fate, and only focused on that which he had no control over. Forster
“Symbolism.” Dictionary of World Literature: Criticism - Forms - Technique. Ed. Joseph T. Shipley. New York: Philosophical Library, 1943. 564-9.
In the short story “The Possibility of Evil,” Shirley Jackson uses several symbols to tell the story about Miss Strangeworth. One symbol she uses consist of the roses that Miss Strangeworth treasures. The roses represent the love and perfection of Miss Strangeworth. As we know, Miss Strangeworth believes that the world is horrible and unclean and that she is the only perfect person. She loves her roses dearly which emphasizes her needs for everything to be perfect just like her. She values her roses so much because only she takes care of them making them a symbol of perfection and becomes one of the items that Miss Strangeworth loves and sees as superior to other roses. Another symbol Jackson uses compose of Pleasant Street, the street that
Everything was great, every day was the same except that particular day when your life
Light, especially fire, and darkness are significantly reoccurring themes in Fahrenheit 451. Guy Montag, the main character, is a fireman, but in this futuristic world the job description of a fireman is to start fires wherever books are found; instead of putting them out. Montag takes a journey from a literary darkness to a knowledgeable light. This journey can be compared to the short story Allegory of the Cave by Plato, in which a prisoner experiences a similar journey. An example of light, in reference to knowledge, occurs just after Montag meets Clarisse for the first time. "When they reached her house all its lights were blazing" (9). Since Montag had rarely seen that many house lights on, I interpreted those lines as saying "that house is full of knowledge and enlightenment; not like the rest of the houses around here which are always dark." Clarisse went on to explain to Montag that her mother, father, and uncle were just sitting around and talking. This was also something that wasn't very commonplace in the city. Fire is an important element of symbolism in Fahrenheit 451. Fire consumes minds, spirits, men, ideas, and books. Fire plays two very different roles in this book. The role of a destructive, devouring, and life ending force, and the role of a nourishing flame.
because the author is saying that you need to repent and ask for forgiveness to
Symbolism was one of the most common and effective figurative languages that were used in the novel. Symbolism gave Ellison the freedom to add double levels of meanings to his work: a literal one that was straight forward and a symbolic one whose meaning was far profounder than the literal one. For example, the quote “live with your head in the lion’s mouth” is a symbol. While one might not notice the symbol, the lion symbolizes the wealthy white supremacists and the head symbolizes the blacks. However, a symbol’s interpretation differs from one individual to another, depending on the understanding or familiarity of the context. The theme of this story, which was blindness, identity and supremacy, was greatly emphasized by Ellison’s use of figurative language, especially symbols. In the story, Ralph Ellison uses the blindfold as a symbol of oppression as well as blacks’ struggle for equality and an ironic symbol of individuality and insight.
Written by author Tim O’Brien after his own experience in Vietnam, “The Things They Carried” is a short story that introduces the reader to the experiences of soldiers away at war. O’Brien uses potent metaphors with a third person narrator to shape each character. In doing so, the reader is able to sympathize with the internal and external struggles the men endure. These symbolic comparisons often give even the smallest details great literary weight, due to their dual meanings. The symbolism in “The Things They Carried” guides the reader through the complex development of characters by establishing their humanity during the inhumane circumstance of war, articulating what the men need for emotional and spiritual survival, and by revealing the character’s psychological burdens.
Symbolism “acts as webbing between theme and story. Themes alone can sound preachy, and stories alone can sound shallow. Symbolism weaves the two together” (Hall). Symbolism uses the story to convey the theme. Darkness is used in the novel to show the secrecy and lies that the story has. The whole story involves secrecy among two women and a man. Without symbolism the story would just have a very dark house and two very mysterious and disturbed women. Instead there is a feel of secrecy right from the beginning. Symbolism gives the story excitement, while also providing the reader with a good read. The author can read the first few pages and determine the story is not a happy
Many authors use this kind of tone to their story because if they don’t, then people will stop reading their work, but instead, the reader wants to get to the interesting facts and keep on reading. Symbolism: The only piece of symbolism in the book is the gold arch above the McDonald’s building. This symbolizes a way for drivers and other people to see the restaurant from a long way away.
Abrams, M. H. A Glossary of Literary Terms, 7th ed. New York: Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 1999.
The Book Thief Short Essay: The Use of Foreshadowing, Irony, and Symbolism in The Book Thief
Everything is a symbol. Everything has a deeper being in which it represents once it is unlocked. The father of deconstruction, Jacques Derrida, was quoted in an interview saying that deconstruction is “to not naturalize what is not natural”. Therefore symbolism is deconstruction in its rawest form. Symbols beg to not be taken at their natural face-value, but rather dived into to reach their deep inner-core of true meaning. One must use every element of deconstruction to unlock the true meaning of a symbol. Symbolism in literature allows the author to express his thoughts and motives in a way that is engaging and entertaining to the reader. The reader must dissect every bit of knowledge presented in order to reach the full fountain of knowledge that can be expressed by a symbol. Symbols are a beautiful thing. It allows the reader to make his own connections to the author’s expressions. The reader can especially be engaged in George Orwell’s 1949 dystopian novel 1984. Symbolism is important in 1984 because the reader can find connections to today’s government in Orwell’s message of control, propaganda, and oppression within the symbols that Orwell creates.
Light and dark are two of the most common symbols used in literature. Darkness often references negative ideas such as evil or death, while light is used for more positive concepts like kindness or life. In “The Tragedy of Macbeth”, William Shakespeare uses the imagery of light and dark to help convey the themes of good and evil throughout the play. Ultimately revealing the nature of the actions of the characters and the intentions of the author.