Many poets are prone to dabbling in symbolism—perhaps because we tend to be right-brained, intuitive. Often, when I’m revising my writing (whether prose or poetry) I discover symbols that I didn’t consciously evoke. There have been periods in my life when dreams have offered me insight, if I take a few moments to try to understand them.
You already know that a symbol is something that stands in for something else—often a material object that represents something immaterial. Here’s an excerpt from my second novel (now in revision). The scene takes place immediately after the death of the protagonist’s mother’s death. Just before dying she confides a secret to him: that he was conceived in an act of rape.
Across the lawn, large crows helped themselves to bread crumbs. Matt knew that it had been Edward Riley, a resident of the facility, who’d scattered them. One of the birds interrupted breakfast to stare at Matt—Matt would have sworn it was so—and his skin tingled at the thought of stories his mother used to tell him of dead people coming back as black birds. Beside the predator, strewn feathers told of a smaller bird that had lost its struggle to keep on living. Matt’s grief came pouring out. That it was because of a fragile creature stunned him at first before he recognized the similitude. Like the wren, his mother fought her whole life for food and survival. She’d known a dark monster, too. Not one that would destroy her suddenly, mercifully, but one that must have haunted every moment of her adult life. One that tore her down from the inside-out and in the end defeated her.
Symbols can emerge from the writing process itself, or they can be conceived before pen is put to paper (or fingers to keyboard). In either case the theme often emerges of its own accord, often surprising the writer in the process. Perhaps you’ve had someone comment on a powerful message you’ve communicated through symbolism that hadn’t been apparent to you upfront. To me, this speaks to the power of the creative process, or muse or whatever you choose to call It.
Symbolic poetry can be overt, in which the poet explains the meaning of the symbols he has chosen. The above excerpt from my novel demonstrates that. Or it may be such that all interpretation is left to the reader who may either read it literally or figuratively.
Here is an example of a short poem by William Butler Yeats that includes layers of symbolism based on the season of autumn:
The Falling of the Leaves
Autumn is over the long leaves that love us,
And over the mice in the barley sheaves;
Yellow the leaves of the rowan above us,
And yellow the wet wild-strawberry leaves.
The hour of the waning of love has beset us,
And weary and worn are our sad souls now;
Let us patt, ere the season of passion forget us,
With a kiss and a tear on thy drooping brow.
by William Butler Yeats
Public Domain
For this week’s Meeting the Bar prompt, let’s go symbolic. Here are some ideas to help you get going, but don’t limit yourself to my suggestions:
• Consult a dream dictionary to find a symbol and take it from there. You can find one online if you don’t have one.
• Start with the seasons of the year and use them to express a season in life.
• Choose a photo or painting that has symbolic potential and use it to jump-start the process.
• Find an object that can stand in for something else and write about it.
• Write a symbolic poem that requires the reader to figure out its deeper meaning. See if reader comments capture your intent.
To participate:
• Write your poem and post it on your blog or website.
• Copy the direct link to the URL and paste it, along with your name, in the Mr. Linky at the bottom of this post.
• Stop by the pub to read and comment on the work of other poets who are participating, especially those who cared enough to comment on yours.
• Have fun and spread the word to other poet friends.
For dVerse Poet’s Pub, this is Victoria Slotto, happy to be tending the bar this week. I hope to visit everyone, but if my comments are brief, it’s a tendonitis thing! Thanks for understanding.
Photo of Yeats: Public Domain
Victoria–great post–thanks for sharing the excerpt from your work–powerful stuff. Love the idea of using symbolism as a prompt of sorts–and actually had a rather layered one I have not shared with you guys yet I did earlier this year. Can’t wait to see what springs up from this prompt…
love the article victoria and symbolism is a powerful vehicle that brings a different level of depth into our poetry – we have some poets in the pub that constantly use symbolism in their writing and for some it’s probably entering new land…exciting…really looking forward to what people are coming up with..
Love! Love! Love! Victoria…this is awesome 🙂 Thank you so much…not just for the prompt…but for the amazing writes I KNOW it will produce…I’ll be back!
Thanks for hosting, Victoria. Your excerpt defines symbolism very clearly, and I love the poem from Yeats. I hadn’t intended to participate today as I’m having back issues again, but I’d already written a poem for another prompt which seemed to fit this one, so couldn’t resist. I will be around to read and comment as able, later.
i think each of your poems would fit the prompt hedge…just saying…smiles
Thanks Claudia–I don’t think I could write without symbolism in there somewhere, but it’s not usually conscious. ;_)
Hope your back is doing better, Joy…but so glad you participated. I’m dealing with a tendonitis…couldn’t be that we’re “seasoned,” could it? :0>
Very seasonal–I know part of mine is tied to arthritis, which always flares when the fronts come through. Ouch on the tendonitis–that’s a very painful one, and hard to ignore. Hope you’re feeling better soon. (Getting old is hell, I tell ya! ;_) )
Thank you Victoria. I love the excerpt from your upcoming book. To me, cardinals represent loved ones who have passed. = )
loved your tequila and worm symbolism laurie
Thanks, Claudia.
This is wonderful and congratulations on the second book! This poem was written and linked up to OLN last year about this time (as my grandmother died 26 years ago this fall it seems an appropriate time and prompt). I have voice lessons to teach this afternoon but look forward to returning visits this evening.
nice…have fun with the voice lesson teaching anna
Thanks Claudia :)!
Hi Victoria – wonderful post – so interesting to see your excerpt. I am traveling tonight so not sure what I will do but if not tonight, tomorrow.
(One stupid thing – I think the Yeats is supposed to “part” and may have typo – patt?)
My eye only catches these things in something typed by another. k.
safe travels k…
Thanks so much – you know, my evening so discombobulated I posted an older poem that I like and fits and I do not think has been much seen. (I guess because I put it in my book which, unfortunately, has been little seen- ha!) Oh well.
Thanks so much, Claudia and Victoria (and you, Brian, lurking somewhere.) k.
lol dont you know it….always just a table a table away…hope you travel well ma’am
I wondered about that, too…Karin. The site I found it on had patt…wasn’t sure if it was some obscure word. :0)
Great post Victoria. Thanks for hosting. Have a good night all.
a good night it is…smiles
I’ve posted an older one, since I’m in stuck in haiga mode. 😉
smiles…your haigas are cool..
This prompt led to an exciting experience for me. I went straight to the computer (it’s my lunch hour at work) and a poem basically wrote itself. Thank you for this post!
ps – victoria – great pics by hubbie. k.
Happy to see all your comments, so far. Now I’m off to read and looking forward to it.
Always a.challenge this type of prompt as not my usual style so gone for an appraoch where the ‘reality’ is simple but maybe it isn’t ….
now that victoria’s in the pub, i can go to bed..smiles..just half past ten over here but work is tiring me out a bit this week…so will crawl between the blankets and get some rest…
Hope you had a good night…and I suppose I’ll be going to bed about when you get up!
Stopping by on my travels to read the offerings. A great prompt Victoria, but then, I never expect anything else of you.
very cool…i love wordplay and symbolism so you are right up my alley today..and looking forward to seeing what everyone brought to the table…just got off work and out on the trail….
Great article Victoria….definately got me thinking and I banged out a quick few lines. It’s unfortunate that the subject matter of my poem happened just outside my house last week….haven’t quite been able to shift the imagery, and the symbolism of the weapon used…seemd to relate to s many things…but aaannnnyywwaaayyyy before I make everyone miserable…..what’s being served up Victoria? A nice cold beer would go down a treat right now….Brian said he was buying 🙂
Beer it is, if that’s what you want. I’m an okay mixologist, but beer is even easier.
Great intro to symbolism Victoria. And I very much enjoyed your prose there. I was already kinda working on something that seems to suit this, so I quick-finished it and posted. Looking forward to untangling the symbolism everyone posts this week.
Cheers!
It’s a nice coincidence that my latest poem is all about a symbol.
I’m yer huckleberry.
ha….love me some doc holliday…smiles.
my all-time favorite movie AND movie character. Val rocked as Doc!
yes he did…ha…picked up a Matt Braun novel about him around the same time and thoroughly enjoyed it….
Had to step away for a while, but I’m back for some fun and inspiration.
I found this quite a tricky prompt, Victoria, but thank you for it, it made me think 🙂
Hey Victoria! Going to try this, this symbolism, we’ll see. bbl.
nice…looking forward to it….
How neat to read an excerpt of your novel and want to read more! Symbolism, here we come, not quite with the stillness I wanted but definitely with the sentiment. Thank you, Victoria for the prompt and all of you all for being here: you, Claudia and Brian. I am so tired! I think I worked on 4 or 5 poems today, but not on my novel . . .What’s up with that?
I find that poetry is my escape from revising my novel!
Fearing the quill (symbolic for keyboard) as of late. This prompt might just get me off my ass (symbolic for… nope really my ass). Thanks Victoria.
woohoo…just popped over to your place the other day to see if you had anything new…lol on you symbl-ass-m
smiles…popped over to your place as well yesterday and re-read your OLN ode….smiles…now over to read your new one…
back from football practice and ready to read the last 10 or so….hope everyone is having a great evening!
Wonderful article, Victoria. Symbolism is a huge part of my creative process. Unfortunately, my muse is on vacation (again) so I linked a prewrite. I chose one that hadn’t been shared on dVerse before so I hope it is new to you even though it isn’t new to me.
Two sick puppies have kept me away this evening. I apologize and will be reading tomorrow.
ugh..hope they will soon feel better anna
Thanks, they both had surgery this week and the vet told me I had to keep them calm, not allow them to play together, and only get short walks. Clearly they have never met any puppies or they would understand this is a near impossible task. My living room has been transformed into a gated puppy ward.
Hope all goes well for them, Anna. They’ve got to be numero uno right now.
wow…waking to 34 links…will have some symbolism with my breakfast…smiles
I’ll be back in the morning to finish reading…or whatever time it will be in your part of the world. Thanks for all the wonderful poetry so far!
sleep well victoria…
i’m on my way to work… wearing my new red dress…autumn leaf red…smiles…have a great day everyone… will be back in the evening for some more reading…
Power colors, heh?
good morning poets!! some nice overnights to check out….see you soon and bringing my coffee…smiles…
I had thought I might give this Thursday’s prompt a miss, as I’m struggling to keep up just now, but when I saw it, just couldn’t let it go by! Thanks for!
I had come here today only to read, but the prompt was just irresistible! Thanks, just linked up. Yeats is one of my favourites, btw.
I’m sooooo late, no symbolism there, I don’t think, ha ha. Thanks, worked on it last night, probably could have written a short story.
Thanks for the prompt, Victoria. and btw, your husband (I assume) takes fantastic photographs!
Yes, Sheila…my husband. He used to be a professional photographer. I’m back to read for a while…
Ooooh, I am so late with my contribution! Will be back for a read in a bit. 🙂
Thanks everyone for your wonderful poetry and encouraging comments. Will check back soon in case there’s any more to come!
Ooops, I was disappointed to see the “bar” closed. I jotted down some ideas for a poem and was just about to work on it — This was put up Thursday (end of busy week) and closed in 48 hours. I am up Sat 6 am to write but it is too late.
So I guess:
(a) people can write poems real fast
(b) lots of retired folks here with days free
(c) people have written a lot already and just put a poem from their collection
But 1-2 days is tough for novice poets to put stuff together.
Any suggestions?
I’m like the worst prompt follower in the history of prompt followers, but I’m looking forward to relaxing with these awesome poems Victoria.
Great excerpt from your book — look that poem as well.
Cheers to all!
Peace
Oh well. Here is my poem — though the widget is closed. “Shared Regrets“. Symbolism: Life’s Choices & The Water Closet