Discussing symbolism in the “Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara

Symbolism is one of the most important literary terms used often by many writers to convey their central idea. According to the Longman Contemporary Dictionary, symbolism can be defined as a device that evokes more than a literal meaning from a person, object, image or word. The author Isabel Allende in his short story, “And of Clay are we created,” Toni Cade Bambara in “The lesson” and finally Ernest Hemingway the author of the short story “Hills like White Elephants” adopts the use of symbolism to suggest their main point.

The central idea of Toni Cade Bambara’s short story “The Lesson” was inequalities in the distribution of wealth. The meaning of Mrs. Moore trip with the children to FAO Schwartz is captured in Bambara’s use of Symbolism. The children looked fiercely at a number of exclusive toys outside the store. Some of these toys included a sailboat and a paperweight. The children had no idea what the paperweight was. Sylvia said to herself “my eyes tell me it’s a chunk of glass cracked with something heavy, and different color inks dripped into the splits, then the whole thin put into a over or something. But for $480 it don’t make sense.” Even though Mrs. Moore explained to them what the paper weight was, the children still did not understand the use or the price. A paperweight is used to hold something that is of value.

Since the children have never had anything valuable, the paper weight can be used to symbolize that their neighborhood (slums) many be holding them down. The children are the people under this paperweight. To these children the cost of the toy is a life’s worth of work. The sailboat similarly is used by Bambara to stand for freedom and the journey that lies ahead of the. Manhattan was only a cab ride away. However it was only a temporary chance for these kids to experience the different type of life rich people live. This suggests that if the children wish to experience this life permanently, then they would have to escape the world of poverty. Among the steps which can help them to flee from their situation is education. A person who wishes to sail a boat first have to learn how and that is exactly what Sylvia and the other children are required to do.

In “Hills like White Elephants,” Hemingway uses the train station as a symbolism to suggest the main idea, thus the major conflict between the characters. The train station represents the choice on whether or not to have the abortion. There is also a set of tracks on either side of the station, each representing one of the choices.

On one side of the station, green landscape full of grain fields and trees was present. There also was a river that run in the foreground of some tall mountains. This area of the station, embody the choice of going through with the abortion. Presently they are able to travel around the world, partying, drinking, staying in hotels and seeing all the beautiful places. They are not burdened with any responsibilities in their life. With an abortion, they could continue their party and fun-filled life, even though their existence would be meaningless.

The other side of the station is dry and barren. The hills in the distance have whitish color as the sun give off light. The woman said, “They look like White Elephants.” White elephant are known to symbolize unexpected or unwanted gifts, which is exactly what the baby would be, should they choose not to have the abortion. The barrenness of the land signify the situation of settling down and having the responsibilities of parenthood which they are not ready for. This life would be difficult but it would have a purpose since children are often characterized as a blessing even though it may be a hindrance to a care free life.

In the short story “And of Clay Are We Created,” the author Allende uses symbolism to suggest how his main character is trapped. The main character’s girlfriend shares with many viewers, the experience of watching Azucena and Rolf Carle on television. The only thing that sets her apart from these viewers is that she has an intimate knowledge of Carle and access to unedited transmission. The television screen brings her close to the reporter and the girl, even though they are separated by several miles. The theme of the story is a voyage into oneself. Allende uses the symbolism of Azucena who has been trapped in a mud pit to show how his main character, Rolf Carle is trapped in his own reality. The narrator says, “For sometime they had predicted that the heat of the eruption could detach the eternal ice from the slopes of the volcano, but no one heeded their warnings: they sounded like the tales of frightened old women:” This quote shows that the main character is stubborn just like Syliva. “Me and Sugar were the only ones right.”

The green canvas backpack that the narrator said Carle always carried could represent his pride and the burdens that follow him since he tries to forget them. Allende uses the camera to represent how Carle is running from reality. Carle uses the camera as a “stratagem for taking refuge behind a lens to test whether reality was more tolerable from that perspective Azucena admitted that she was not only trapped by the rubbles but her sister and brother were pulling her by her legs. This suggests that Rolf Carle has a past which he tries to brush off. Almost to the end of the story, Carle admits that he had a sister called Katharina and he was guilty for abandoning her to death. This guilty conscience was not just a past but it was “a claw sunk in his throat.

Symbolism, a device that evokes more than a literal meaning from a person, object, image is important to the development of the central idea. The object, camera is used in Allende’s short story to portray how the main character tries to run away from his reality by testing different perspectives. The train station in Hemingway’s “Hills like Elephants” also foreshadows the main point, that is conflict between couples and finally Bambara in “The Lesson” uses the symbol of the paperweight to show how the children might be settling for less.