Symbols In The Possibility Of Evil By Shirley Jackson

Symbolism is a great way to show the meaning of something or someone to a person. In the story Lord of the Flies by William Golding, it shows much symbolism. There are three things that specifically symbolic to the story. The three symbols are Piggy’s glasses, the conch, and the scar.

All authors place symbols within their writings to apply hidden meanings that correspond with certain characters. Writer Alice Hoffman’s brilliant novel, Practical Magic contains many symbolic items. Some readers are unable to connect the emblematic pieces to a specific character. Others are able to identify the exact objects that are connected to certain people in a book. Three symbols in Hoffman’s Practical Magic that are easy to identify are the dove heart, the lilacs, and the thorns. These items are mentioned on multiple occasions throughout the entire novel, this is to show that they are of great importance to the protagonists. Alice does this to allow her readers to discover the hidden symbols quickly, and easily.

Through her use of a changing narrative perspective, Margaret Laurence creates a contrast in character development. Laurence shows the reader the male protagonist of the story, Chris, through the eyes of a child first, then of an adolescent, and finally through an adult’s eyes. At the beginning of “Horses of the Night,” the narrator, Vanessa notices that Chris looks completely oblivious towards Vanessa’s Grandfather’s belligerence, as he is displaying “no sign of feeling anything.” This is the first sign Laurence provides about Chris escaping in order to cope with reality. Next, when Vanessa visits Shallow Creek she comes to a realization that most of the stories Chris has shared with her about the farm, only exists “in some other dimension.”

This quote shows that Miss Strangeworth is very well-known in her town, and it also shows that she has a good reputation because she is highly regarded by most of the townspeople. At the end, Miss Strangeworth is devastated because her rose garden is destroyed, “She began to cry silently for the wickedness of the world when she red the words: Look out at what used to be your roses,” (6). The destruction of Miss Strangeworth’s roses is very similar to how Miss Strangeworth's reputation is destroyed because of the evil letters she wrote. In this situation, the roses are a symbol of Miss Strangeworth because roses look beautiful, but their thorns hurt, just as Miss Strangeworth appears and behaves like a pleasant lady in person, but in reality, she writes evil, hurtful letters. In this situation, the roses could be a symbol of Miss Strangeworth personality. The roses also lead to a deeper understanding of the theme which is that looks can be deceiving because (as stated

In the short story “Everyday Use,” Alice Walker shows the conflicts and struggles with people of the African-American culture in America. The author focuses on the members of the Johnson family, who are the main characters. In the family there are 2 daughters and a mother. The first daughter is named Maggie, who had been injured in a house fire has been living with her mom. Her older sister is Dee, who grew up with natural beauty wanted to have a better life than her mother and sister.The author used symbolism throughout the whole story to show the difference between these characters. The symbolism is there to give us a further explanation on the family and also to tell us how much heritage is important to some, but not others.

“The Possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson has a truly unexpected plot and Mrs. Strangeworth has changed throughout the story. Mrs. Strangeworth is the main character in this book and in the beginning, she is a pleasant, caring old woman who enjoys roses and talking to others. The other people in the town have received rude and harsh letters from an anonymous person. During the end of the story, the reader soon finds out that Mrs. Strangeworth has been writing the letters and as a punishment, the people destroy her roses. Mrs. Strangeworth dramatically changes through the story and she teaches us the theme of appearance can be deceiving.

In the novel, The Outsiders by S.E.Hinton, a boy named Ponyboy lives through hard times as a Greaser. Ponyboy learns a lot about life through the symbolism that is throughout this story. The main points that are used for symbolism is Hair, ‘Gold’, and Sunrises.

Symbols are an important tool in literature, they develop the plot and make the reader think deeper about the meaning behind some of the key aspects of a novel. There are three main symbols in a Brave New World that not only give the novel a deeper meaning but convey the theme and tone. In a Brave New World the three main symbols are books and flowers, soma, and technology. These symbols are important in the novel’s development and convey the theme and tone.

Symbols and themes are the most fundamental parts of any novel. Symbols can be defined as characters or objects in a novel that are used to represent and show certain ideas and concepts. Themes, however, are the main ideas or meanings of a story/novel. In William Golding’s novel Lord of the Flies, symbols such as the lord of the flies, the conch, and the beast are used to enrich the themes of the book. Now, the lord of the flies is probably the most complicated symbol in the novel. Throughout most of the book, it is used to develop the themes of both fear and evil on the island. The conch is a shell. A shell that is used by the boys to call assemblies, and give one the authority to speak during the assemblies. The conch is used to build up the theme of civilization on the island. Finally, there is the beast. In the novel Lord of the Flies, the beast is the most feared symbol. It is used to build up the theme of fear throughout the novel.

In many novels symbolism functions as a way to reveal much of what is intended for the reader to understand about characters and the work as a whole. Symbols can be ideas, objects, or actions that constitute multiple interpretations or meanings. This is also true for many older novels including Frankenstein. Throughout the gothic fiction novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the use of symbolism and the role it partakes in the entirety of the story signifies its importance. There are many symbols throughout the novel some including light and fire, the creation story, and exploration. The function of these symbols in the story play a pivotal role in how the reader perceives the characters and also how the theme of knowledge influences the nature

Within the novel “Chronicle of a Death Foretold” the author uses specific symbols throughout the book to get certain points across. He uses symbolism through the setting of the book so we are able to read between the lines. The weather and specific objects in nature are two symbolic representations used consistently throughout the novel. Other forms of symbols can include the way he uses character names, senses, and animals. The author chooses to use all of these at specific points in the book to make our attention really drawn to key factors in the novel.

The book Night is written by Elie Wiesel. For my history project I had to find a recurring word, or symbol from the novel Night. The word death is used frequently throughout the book. During World War II, Elie, his family, and other jews from the area, were deported to German concentration camps, known as Aushwitz and Buchenwald. In this true novel, Elie takes you through his journey of how horrible concentration camps are and how he survived

Alice Walker’s story “Roselily” is about hardships and doing what is best for the ones you love. The story elegantly shows Roselily’s emotions and thoughts about her marriage through diction and symbolism. These literary devices portray an unsure mother about her decision to marry a religious man for the sake of her children and her future.

In the short story “The Possibility of Evil,” Shirley Jackson uses several symbols to tell her story about Miss Strangeworth. One symbol she uses is her name, Miss Strangeworth’s name foreshadows a hint that readers do not think about when they first start reading the story. For example in the story Miss Strangeworth starts acting strange as stated in her name and the readers then realize the author probably did that on purpose. Another symbol Shirley Jackson uses is the letters because Miss Strangeworth needed to keep her little town sweet and she wrote letters to the people in the town. Miss Strangeworth thought she was doing the right thing by watching them because she felt it was her duty to watch the people. Lastly, Shirley also uses pride

“When the Doctors came they said she had died of heart disease - - of the joy that kills.” (Chopin 4). The Story of an Hour is a short story published by Kate Chopin that consists of a woman who was diagnosed with a heart disease and appears to present a rather complex relationship with her husband who was presumed to be killed in a work-based accident.