RATIONALE:
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Social Realism
Social realists choose:
o Everyday happenings
o Current events
o Social relationships
o Interaction and disparity of social classes.
Aimed to effect social change through socio-political pieces
Works that portrayed the truths of society
ROMANTICISM: DEFINITION
It is a philosophical movement of the 19th century.
It was a reaction to the Enlightenment.
It involved belief in the power of the human spirit and emotions.
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SOCIAL REALISM IN LITERATURE ACTIVITY
Laid the groundwork for contemporary tragedy Write a critical essay on Social Realism in
An experimentation with the social works Literature using the texts: “Lengua Para
It was determined to discover hypocrisy and Diablo,” “Preludes”, and “The Justice
manipulation of the upper class. System”
FEMINIST CRITICISM
Simone de Beauvoir
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4. Marxist Feminists- view women as members of the oppressed working class
5. Socio-Semio-Psycho Feminists- study the psychoanalytic and mythic theories of the feminine
6. Lesbian Feminists – writing metaphorically based on the female body rather than the male
7. Black feminists – consists of blocks; see themselves as most oppressed.
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they enter discourse, whatever they say will be
subdued and alienated.
It critiques patriarchal language and literature
by exposing these reflect
--- It refers to the ways of thinking people
Precept # 4 Women writers have addressed the issues of
Feminist Criticism believes that there are masculinized writing through male gendered
words/phrases/ language used in several texts that are language that they may not serve to
only for women. accommodate the literary understanding of
women’s lives.
“God the Father” which is looked upon as a
way of designating the sacred as solely men
(or, in other words, biblical language glorifies
men through all of the masculine pronouns like
“he” and “him” and addressing “God as a
“He”).
Feminist theorists attempt to reclaim and
redefine women through re-structuring
language.
--- Feminist theorists have used the term
“womyn” instead of “women.”
Some Feminists theorists find solace in
changing titles of unisex jobs (for example,
police officer versus policemen or mail carrier
versus mailman).
Some feminist theorists have reclaimed and
redefined such words as “dyke” and “bitch”
and others have invested redefining
knowledge into feminists’ dictionaries
Oppressive lives of women that are not only
shaped by gender alone but by other elements
such as racisms, classicism, ageism,
heterosexualism, disableism, etc.
Precept# 5 Mary Ann Weather’s publication, “An
Feminist Criticism is concerned on the experiences of argument for Black Women’s Liberation as a
women from all races, classes, and cultures. Revolutionary Force.
--- Mary Ann Weather’s states that “black
women”, at least the black women, at least the
Black Women I have come in contact with in
the movement, have been expending all their
energies in “librating” Black men (if you
yourself are not free, how can you “liberate”
someone else?)”
--- Women of color were put in a position of
choosing sides. White women wanted women
of color and working-class women to become
part of the women’s movement over struggling
with their men (working-class, poor, and men
of color) against class oppression and racism in
the Civil Rights Movement.
Precept # 6 Feminism believes that there is stylistic
Feminist Criticism believes that women writers write difference in women’s writing. Women tend to
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differently from the men. used reflexive constructions more than men
(e.g., “She found herself crying”).
They have noticed that women and men tend
to communicate differently. Men directed
towards solutions, women towards
connecting.
SYMBOLISM
SYMBOLISM is the practice or art of using an object or a word to represent an abstract idea. An action, person,
place, word, or object can all have a symbolic meaning. When an author wants to suggest a certain mood or
emotion, he can use symbolism to hint at it, rather than just blatantly saying it.
SYMBOLISM IN LITERATURE
Symbolism is often used by writers to enhance their writing. Symbolism can give a literary work more
richness and color and can make the meaning of the work deeper.
Symbolism is the use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities, by giving them symbolic meanings that are
different from their literal sense.
Symbolism can take different forms. Generally, it is an object representing another, to give an entirely
different meaning that is much deeper and more significant. Sometimes, however, an action, an event or
a word spoken by someone may have a symbolic value. For instance, “smile” is a symbol of friendship.
Similarly, the action of someone smiling at you may stand as a symbol of the feeling of affection which
that person has for you.
Symbols do shift their meanings depending on the context they are used in. “A chain,” for example, may
stand for “union” as well as “imprisonment”. Thus, symbolic meaning of an object or an action is
understood by when, where, and how it is used. It also depends on who reads the work.
A symbol (pronounced SIM-bull) is any image or thing that stands for something else. It could be as simple
as a letter, which is a symbol for a given sound (or set of sounds). Similarly, every word is a symbol for the
idea it represents. Flags are symbols for nations. And of course, we have all sorts of visual symbols that we
use every day: $ @ & =
However, symbols don’t have to be the kind of things you only find on keyboards. A tree might symbolize
nature. Einstein symbolizes genius in our culture. Anything can be a symbol, if we make it one. In
literature, symbols are often characters, settings, images, or other motifs that stand in for bigger ideas.
Authors often use symbols (or “symbolism”) to give their work with more meaning and to make a story be
about more than the events it describes. This is one of the most basic and widespread of all literary
techniques.
However, authors don’t usually give us a roadmap to their symbolism, so it can take a lot of thought to
figure out exactly what the symbols in a work of literature stand for —to interpret them.
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BASIC EXAMPLES AND EXPLANATION
Example 1
In Greek mythology, the Gods are all symbols for forces of nature – for example, Poseidon is a symbol for the sea.
He is extremely powerful, but also wrathful and unpredictable. By telling stories of Poseidon’s vengeful fury, the
Greeks (who were not great shipbuilders) symbolically delivered a message about how dangerous the sea can be.
Example 2
In our culture, Albert Einstein is the ultimate symbol of intelligence and scientific genius. When we simply see
Einstein’s iconic face on a T-shirt, book cover, or advertisement, we immediately know that whoever put that
image there was trying to say something related to extreme intelligence.
In addition to using symbols in their writing, authors may also critique symbols that already exist in their culture
(or someone else’s). For example, apes in Western culture stereotypically symbolize humanity’s natural origins and
the primitive traits that we normally attribute to animals. If a person is acting rudely, stupidly, or violently, we
might call him an ‘ape’ or a ‘gorilla’ which expresses a negative view of wild nature, and human nature, in our
culture; but in the Planet of the Apes movies, this symbol is reversed – the apes are often more sympathetic,
sophisticated, and intelligent than the people, so they come to symbolize some of the best qualities of humanity as
well as the worst. This makes the movie a critique of popular ideas about humanity and nature: ‘human nature
isn’t all bad and the badness in people isn’t necessarily natural.’ At the same time, human beings normally
symbolize civilization and humanitarian values; however the cruelty of some of the people in movies makes
humanity the symbol of brutishness instead of the apes.
The actions of a character, word, action, or event that have a deeper meaning in the context of the whole story.
METAPHORS AS SYMBOLISM
A metaphor is a figure of speech that uses symbolism.
It compares two things that are not similar and shows that they actually do have something in common.
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Time is money: This is symbolic because it warns you that when you spend your time, you are giving up
the opportunity to be doing something else with that time (just as when you spend your money, you give
up your chance to do something else with the money). Further, like money, time is not infinite.
Life is a roller-coaster: This is symbolic because it indicates that there will be ups and downs in life that
you have to weather.
Love is a jewel: This is symbolic because it suggests that love is rare and pressure.
ALLEGORY AS SYMBOLISM
Sometimes symbolism takes the form of a literary tool called an allegory. Allegory is an extended use of symbolism
and metaphors. A story, a poem, or even a whole book can be an allegory and the symbolism will permeate
throughout.
One example of an allegory is the monologue from Shakespeare in “As You Like It.”
“All the world's a stage,And all the men and women merely players;they have their exits and their
entrances;And one man in his time plays many parts,”
This is symbolic of the fact that people are putting on a show and that they play many roles over the
course of their lives.
SYMBOLISM IN POETRY
Many poets used symbolism to deepen the meaning of their poems. Here is an excerpt from William Blake's “Ah
Sunflower.” In it, Blake refers to life cycle and uses sunflowers to represent humankind and that they desire
everlasting life.
“Ah Sunflower, weary of time, Who countest the steps of the sun; Seeking after that sweet golden clime
Where the traveler’s journey is done;”
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FLOWERS AS SYMBOLS
Even flowers can have a symbolism:
A ladder may stand as a symbol for a connection between heaven and earth.
David stopped his car at the red signal. (In other cultures, the color red is symbol of blood, passion, and
danger.)
Rebels raised a white flag to negotiate. (During war, the color white symbolizes making peace with the
enemy. Otherwise, it represents purity and life.)
The Red Cross is working around the world. (The symbol of the cross represents Christianity, and the red
cross in particular represents aid in times of need.)
The Muslim forces raised their flag with a crescent on it. (The crescent moon represents Islam.)
He turned green when found a wallet. (Green color is often associated with greed, jealousy, and monetary
affairs.)
They dressed in black to the funeral of their friend. (The color black is associated with death.)
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The yellow boat turned into the channel, to make the tourists happy. The color yellow color is the symbol
of deterioration and infidelity, as well as the symbol of freshness and happiness.)
He was disappointed when the mirror broke. (Broken mirror is an symbol of separation.)
He gave a red rose to his wife on Valentine Day. (Red rose is a symbol for love.)
He, after a long time, saw a silver lining in the shape of the arrival of his brother. (Silver edge/lining of
clouds symbolize hope and optimism.)
You work like an ox. (The ox symbolizes hard work and stamina.)
When he saw a bat in dream, he grew white with fear. (Bats are the symbol of death.)
We find symbolic value in Shakespeare’s famous monologue in his play As you Like It:
These lines are symbolic of the fact that men and women, in the course of their lives, perform different roles. “A
stage” here symbolizes the world, and “players” is a symbol for human beings.
Blake uses a sunflower as a symbol for human beings, and “the sun” symbolizes life. Therefore, these lines
symbolically refer to their life cycle and their yearning for a never-ending life.
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Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights presents almost every character, house, surroundings, and events in a symbolic
perspective. The word “Wuthering,” which means “stormy,” represents the wild nature of inhabitants. The
following lines allow us to look into the symbolic nature of two characters:
“My love for Linton is like the foliage in the woods. Time will change it; I’m well aware, as winter changes
the trees. My love for Heathcliff resembles the eternal rocks beneath a source of little visible delight, but
necessary.”
The phrase “foliage of leaves” for is a symbol for Linton’s fertile and civilized nature. On the contrary, Heathcliff is
likened to an “eternal rock,” which symbolizes his crude and unbendable nature.
Sara Teasdale in her poem Wild Asters develops a number of striking symbols:
Always knew.
In the above lines, “spring” and “daisies” are symbols of youth. “Brown and barren” are symbols of transition from
youth to old age. Moreover, “Bitter autumn” symbolizes death.
In this beautiful poem, William Davies who has used the symbol of rain to show the different classes of society. He
does this by describing the way the upper leaves benefit from the rain first, and then hand down the rest to the
lower leaves. The same way, rich people pass on the leftover benefits to the poor people.
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Example #6: My Heart Leaps Up When I Behold (By William Wordsworth)
So is it now I am a man;
In this poem, the poet uses rainbow as a symbol of hope and general wellbeing throughout his life.
Example #7: XXIII, Crossing Alone the Nighted Ferry (By A. E. Housman)
The poet has used the symbol of a river to represent life and the past memories associated with it.
FUNCTION OF SYMBOLISM
Symbolism gives a writer freedom to add double levels of meanings to his work: a literal one that is self-evident,
and the symbolic one whose meaning is far more profound than the literal. Symbolism, therefore, gives
universality to the characters and the themes of a piece of literature. Symbolism in literature evokes interest in
readers as they find an opportunity to get an insight into the writer’s mind on how he views the world, and how he
thinks of common objects and actions, having broader implications.
RELATED TERMS
ALLEGORY
An allegory is a complex form of symbolism in which the entire story is a symbol for something else.
For example, George Orwell’s Animal Farm is an allegory for the Russian Revolution and the rise of the Soviet
Union. Each of the characters is symbolic – Snowball represents Leon Trotsky, for example, while the cart-horse
Boxer represents the Russian working class. The novel as a whole describes Orwell’s interpretation of the events in
Russia, and warns of the dangers of Communism while simultaneously making a case that it was individual evil, not
Communism as an ideology, that caused the injustices of the Soviet Union. So an allegory is a big symbol that
contains many symbols within it.
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Allegories have been used since ancient times to deliver stories about cultural values, heritage, and history.
Ancient mythologies often take the form of allegories for deep psychological and spiritual truths, while several
stories in the New Testament are allegories for Christian moral truths.
METAPHOR
A metaphor is kind of like a symbol, but it’s usually used briefly (over the span of just a sentence or two), whereas
a symbol is usually extended throughout a story or poem. For example, take the common expression “bottled-up
emotion.” In this expression, the bottle is a metaphor for holding in feelings. However, if we had an entire work in
which bottles kept appearing at key psychological moments in the story, we might begin to suspect that the
bottles were a symbol for this emotional problem.
This is a grey area – what if a metaphor is extended across a whole stanza, or a chapter, but is absent in the rest of
the work? Is it still a metaphor, or is it a symbol? Ultimately, it doesn’t matter much at that point. If something is in
the grey area between metaphor and symbol, you can call it either.
1. Start with some abstract idea that you want to write about.
2. Then think about what characters or images might “stand in” for that idea.
Example
You might be interested in the concept of courage, so you would create a character who symbolizes
courage, such as a warrior or political prisoner.
3. Once you’ve created this symbolic character, remember that whatever happens to the character becomes a
message about the idea.
So if your political prisoner ends up meeting a tragic fate, readers will interpret your story as a warning
about how courage doesn’t always bring happiness. If the character ends up succeeding in the story, it
becomes a story about the triumph of courage. Your views on the concept must dictate how the story
goes!
It’s best not to limit the story to a single symbol, though. The best symbolism is a complex interplay of multiple
symbols, embodied in different characters, places, or plot devices. To go back to our story about courage, you
might want to have another character representing selfishness or perhaps mercy. When the character interacts
with your warrior/prisoner, you have an opportunity to say something about the relationship between courage
and these other concepts.
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In creative writing, however, symbols are an excellent way to find inspiration use your imaginations, and cretae
more interesting, sophisticated stories. If your characters and images are symbolic, the story feels much more
meaningful and purposeful, and is likely to be more enjoyable to read. Readers have the pleasure of figuring out
your symbols, and then get to interpret the ideas behind your story. No longer just a plot or description, your story
can touch on ideas about life that are important and interesting to most people.
JUXTAPOSITION IN LITERATURE
JUXTAPOSITION is a literary technique in which two or more ideas, places, characters, and their actions are
placed side by side in a narrative or a poem, for the purpose of developing comparisons and contrasts.
In literature, juxtaposition is a useful device for writers to portray their characters in great detail, to create
suspense, and to achieve a rhetorical effect. It is a human quality to comprehend one thing easily by comparing it
to another. Therefore, a writer can make readers sense “goodness” in a particular character by placing him or her
side-by-side with a character that is predominantly “evil.” Consequently, goodness in one character is highlighted
by evil in the other character. Juxtaposition in this case is useful in the development of characters.
John Milton’s Paradise Lost is one of the narrative poems that can be used as an example of juxtaposition.
This well-crafted literary piece is clearly based on the juxtaposition of two characters: God and Satan.
Frequently in the poem, the bad qualities of Satan and the good qualities of God are placed side-by-side,
and the comparison made brings to the surface the contrast between the two characters. The
juxtaposition in this poem helps us to reach the conclusion that Satan deserved his expulsion from the
paradise because of his unwillingness to submit to God’s will.
Charles Dickens uses the technique of juxtaposition in the opening line of his novel A Tale of Two Cities:
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness,
it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of
Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had
nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way …”
In order to give us an idea of the factors responsible for the French Revolution, Dickens uses juxtaposition
throughout the novel. Here, the haves and have-nots are put side-by-side to highlight the presence of severe
disparity and discord in the then-French society, which ultimately paved the way for the revolution. By examining
the given juxtaposition, readers can vividly imagine the calamitous atmosphere before the revolution, and
understand its need at that time.
Example #3: Do not Go Gentle into that Good Night (By Dylan Thomas)
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Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
In Dylan Thomas’ poem Do not Go Gentle into that Good Night, the speaker is asking his father not to give up, like
ordinary dying men, but to fight against it to survive. The juxtaposition is in the action of struggle for life, to put off
death by not merely lying down to wait for death.
Juxtaposition is a literary device that William Shakespeare uses most commonly in his play Romeo and Juliet. We
notice the juxtaposition of light and darkness repeatedly. Consider an example from Act I, Scene V:
Here, the radiant face of Juliet is juxtaposed with a black African’s dark skin. Romeo admires Juliet by saying that
her face seems brighter than brightly lit torches in the hall. He says that, at night, her face glows like a bright jewel
that shines against the dark skin of an African.
FUNCTION OF JUXTAPOSITION
Writers employ the literary technique of juxtaposition in order to surprise their readers and evoke their interest,
by means of developing a comparison between two dissimilar things by placing them side by side. The comparison
drawn adds vividness to a given image, controls the pacing of the poem or a narrative, and provides a logical
connection between two vague concepts.
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