POETRY SYMBOL - ALLEGORY

SYMBOL: something that means more than what it is; an object, animate or inanimate, which represents or “stands for” something else suggests a great variety of specific meanings; meanings “ray out” from a symbol the richest & most difficult of the poetic figures, resulting from its imprecision

IMAGE, METAPHOR, & SYMBOL IMAGE: means what it is; single sense experience METAPHOR: means something else; comparison; represents single thing; closed & specific SYMBOL: means what it is & something else too; represent multiple ideas; open & general

The Sick Rose O Rose, thou art sick! The invisible worm That flies in the night, In the howling storm, Has found out thy bed Of crimson joy, And his dark secret love Does thy life destroy. --William Blake

INTERPRETING SYMBOLISM A symbol defines an area of meaning and any interpretation that falls within that area is permissible. We should NEVER assume that because the meaning of a symbol is more or less open, we may make it mean anything we choose. Whatever our interpretation of a symbolic poem, it must be tied firmly to the facts of the poem.

ALLEGORY: a story in verse or prose with a double meaning: a primary surface meaning and a secondary or under-the-surface meaning A system of comparisons rather than one comparison Differs from symbolism in that it puts less emphasis on the images for their own sake and more on their ulterior meanings and the meanings are more fixed; meanings do not ray out from allegory as they do from symbols. Examples: Animal Farm, Lord of the Flies.

ALLEGORY METAPHOR SYMBOL SYMBOL METAPHOR METAPHOR SYMBOL METAPHOR