1. Symbolism and Literary Devices
The House of the Scorpion

2. The House of the Scorpion
Symbolism
The House of the Scorpion

3. The House of the Scorpion - Symbols
Vampire
Dove/Dove feather
White poppy fields
Beehive
Virgin Mary Statue
Peter Rabbit
The oasis
Symbol – an object, person, event in the story that is used to describe a greater meaning
Often a physical object that represents an idea, rather than something physical or real

4. Scorpion Symbolizes: The Alacran Family
A powerful, terrible desert dweller
Poisonous, lethal
Sneaky, hide rom view of others
sting
The symbol of a scorpion is a big part of the book. People from the town of Durango were called that because there was so many of them and they were always running around. El Patron took the name of Matteo Alacran and it resembles the family of the Alacrans. There are many pictures and signs of scorpions in the Big House. Some are hidden and used for protection.

5. Vampire Symbolizes:
Lives off the blood of human clones
Live forever – yet you have to keep sucking blood to keep alive

6. Dove/Dove Feather Symbolizes:
Hope
Peace
Survival

7. White Poppy Fields Symbolizes:
Beautiful flowers, innocence, goodness – yet, what lies beneath them is death
Eejits die in the fields from no breaks and from thirst
Things are not always what they seem
Used to make drugs
The white poppy fields outside of Matt's old house was a symbol of beauty and secrets. The fields looked beautiful when you looked at them, but if you could really see what happened under it, it was horror. Eejits were forced to work in the fields with no breaks. They would sometimes die from thirst or extreme labor. The eejits were left there to decay or be buried. Not many people knew about what lie underneath the beauty that hid it.

8. The Beehive Symbolizes:
A group working together
Hard-working and cooperation
Against laziness
The working class
Obedience
Communism
Bees are magnificent as far as productivity and industry is concerned. They produce beeswax and honey which are golden. Gold and the golden color have always been related to wealth. They certainly know how to sting to protect their wealth.
They are industrious
The are auspicious (successful creatures)

9. Statue of the Virgin Mary (Guadalupe) Symbolizes:
Goodness
Celia values non-material things, while El Patron values money and material possessions
Celia is Matt’s mother, like Mary is also a mother
Matt and Celia’s strong relationship and connection to each other
But not every character is as greedy as El Patrón. Celia, for one, has just a few prized possessions, including her chipped Virgin Mary statue, which "she had brought […] with her all the way from her village in Aztlán. The Virgin's robe was slightly chipped, which Celia disguised with a spray of artificial flowers" (2.80). The statue isn't much to look at, but it's got sentimental value for Celia. We'd like to think that instead of hoarding it after death, Celia will pass it on to Matt, so she can pass on those memories. She's got the right attitude when it comes to stuff: don't value everything; value things with meaning.
Even when Matt was away he thought of the Virgin because of what Celia taught him. Before Matt would go to bed Celia would talk to him about Her. It showed that the two had a strong relationship together. They both cared about each other very much.
A symbol of what Matt learned from Celia and the relationship they had together. 

10. Peter Rabbit Symbolizes:
Matt
Being tapped and outsmarting your enemy
Eats from the garden as Matt eats from Celia’s garden

11. The Oasis Symbolizes: Tam Lin and Matt’s relationship Freedom
Rest and rejuvenation
Isolation
The oasis is a symbol of Tam Lin and Matt's relationship. Tam Lin took Matt to the oasis and that's when you could tell Tam Lin cared about Matt. Later in the book Matt goes back to the oasis to remember Tam Lin after he left. Tam Lin left survival gear for Matt. This was a hint telling Matt to find his freedom. Tam Lin also showed that he was Matt's friend.

12. The House of the Scorpion
Literary Devices
The House of the Scorpion

13. Pg
“The doctor was tall and bony. His head was fringed with hair like the fluff on a duck's bottom…
Pg. 40
“His [Matt’s] body ached like a tooth in the morning.”
Pg. 70
When he [El Patron] was young, he made a choice, like a tree does when it decides to grow one way or the other…”
Pg. 213
“…Benito was as dumb as a guppy…”
Simile
A comparison between two unlike objects using the words like or as
Pg. 45
“You look like a pig in a sty.”

14. Metaphor Pg. 70 “You’re doing very good for a hothouse plant.” Pg. 40
“…Tom was a moral black hole.”
“His voice was…the only rope he could throw to Chacho.”
Metaphor
A comparison of two unlike objects NOT using like or as

15. Hyperbole The use of great exaggeration to show emphasis Pg. 44
“It wouldn’t surprise me if you ate them [cockroaches].”
Pg. 41
“I’d rather clean out a henhouse! At least they’re useful…” (Rosa referring to taking care of Matt)
Hyperbole
The use of great exaggeration to show emphasis

16. Pg. 44
“[The fly] sat on the meat, just as though it had been invited to dinner, and rubbed its hairy paws as it gloated over the meal.”
The shrimp harvester “whined and complained” as it moved along
The shrimp harvester had a “cavernous belly” to collect plankton in
Personification
A metaphor which give human qualities to an object that is not human

17. Asked to add emphasis, not to receive an answer
Rhetorical Question
Pg. 233
“Don’t you think I’m owed those lives?”
Pg. 232
“Cat got your tongue the old man said?”
Pg. 231
“Why didn’t I escape when I had the chance?”
Asked to add emphasis, not to receive an answer