Symbolism is universal in books, and it is really shown in literature if you look deep. Even the smallest thing might become a very important symbol, if you see through its semi-translucent surface. There were four books that I read, which really exemplified how symbols, however subtle, are very important. The first book I read was The Alchemist, by Paolo Cohelo, about a young man who goes to the pyramids to fulfill a prophecy, Sky Raiders, by Brandon Mull about a boy ripped from his home, and enslaved in another dimension, Vietnamerica By Gio-Bao Tran, a true story about an Vietnamese-American boy learning his families history from the Vietnam war, and A Thousand Splendid Suns by Kahled Hosseini, a story about two girls living in Afghanistan. Symbols throughout all genres have many symbols that are very important.
In fantasy books symbolism is a lot more free, because you are able to play around with everything that surrounds the character. In The Alchemist, the main character, Santiago at first calls a Character known as Melchizedek "old man", but later, calls him "old king" this subtle change in speech makes a big impact o how we see into his thoughts. He is a lot more reverent of the "old king" now, and also we can see how his thoughts changed throughout his journey. In Sky Raiders, the main character Cole, gets very suspicious of people. At one point he just asks "Weren't you just trying to get rid of me?" Cole is letting all of his insecurities rise up into his character, and he is trying to absolve himself from his insecurities. Cole is trying to keep his luxury of trust, but at what cost? Symbolism in non-realistic fiction is a lot easier to play around with, but not necessarily more meaningful.
In realistic fiction, and non-fiction, symbolism is a little less free, but sometimes that can make it better. These books have often fewer, but more meaningful symbols. In Vietnamerica, Gao-Bao's parents receive a letter from Paris, France. This letter represents all that their family could have been had they moved to France. It represents both the good and bad about that scenario. Also, this letter represents the stark difference between the western world and Vietnam. This is a non-fiction story, so this letter had worth to Gao-Bao's family. In the book A Thousand Splendid Suns, the main character Marian has ice cream which she had so longed for in her life of poverty, once she had married in an arranged marriage. This first represents all the hope that she has for her new marriage, and her longing for something sweet to hold in her life. Secondly it represents that something that at first seems sweet, may really be ice cold. Even the smallest and subtlest of things can hold symbols that pack a really big punch.
All of these symbols, and all symbols throughout the literary world have at least one thing in common with all of the other symbols. They all represent things that are accentuated in their respective story later on. These symbols may seem very subtle on the surface, and their appearances may seem too sneaky, they are all catchable, and once you catch those symbols, they can make a world of difference in the story. Symbols like these are everywhere, both in books, and in real life, so we can use the knowledge obtained from these symbols to help us with our real life struggles, and to parse all of the information thrown at us. These symbols can help us understand our world.
Wednesday, December 17, 2014
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part One Extra Credit symbolism-- Caesar Crossing the Rubicon
Caesar Flickerman is a very important (and dastardly) figure in all three Hunger Games movies, but his evil side is especially accentuated in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part One. He really shows how puppeted he, and the rest of Panem (their country) is by the capitol. Caesar is the host for the Hunger Games (a gladiatorial competition in which 24 "tributes" fight to the death), so he obviously has the wrong taste in entertainment. In The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part One, Caesar is interviewing one of the victorious tributes, Peeta Malark, and Peeta is clearly forced to say exactly what Caesar told him. In his interviews with Peeta crossed so many boundaries (hence the title of this blog post), including talking about sensitive subjects to the very people who can't handle those subjects, and also being, as many people call him "the ultimate coward". Caesar has earned that title, and is the epitome of the capitol's crude and suzerain way of life.
In The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part One, Caesar frequently interviews Peeta. He asks Peeta unfriendly and cruel questions about topics like his love for Katniss, and his feelings about the rebels and the Hunger Games. In one case, he even has Peeta beaten by "peacekeeping troops" for telling Katniss that she is about to be attacked by nuclear weapons. Also, they turn Peeta into a living, breathing weapon, and Caesar just seems to keep being materialistic and content. Furthermore, his interviews are in front of millions of people with topics no one would want to talk about in front of anyone. Here is an excerpt from one interview. "It costs your life," says Caesar. "Oh, no. It costs a lot more than your life. To murder innocent people?" says Peeta. "It costs everything you are.""--pg 23 of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay. We can easily discern that this is because of his thoughts on his own suzerainty that he has the guts to ask this question. He would not to his equal, because he is "the ultimate coward". Grossly, the symbol of the capitol's way of life that he represents is reeking off of him in scenes like this.
Caesar is also in my opinion defamed by his nonchalant way of asking these questions. In the first two Hunger Games books, he just casually introduces twenty-four tributes that are about to fight to the death, and only one will survive. Oh, you know, just a Saturday afternoon stroll. In the interviews with Peeta, he has a fake kind of emotion that is supposed to bring the people of Panem rallying towards The Capitol's cause, but he is seeming not to want to linger too long on opinions that Peeta has that disagree with his. Again, a perfect depiction of the ultimate coward. While Peeta is getting beaten by peacekeepers, Caesar just blankly stares at the situation. He is exemplified as the person who barbarically will sit by while there is something terrible happening, and as in the Hunger Games, actually condone that act. He is a Capitol idiot, and an ultimate coward.
Caesar is the biggest window that the people of Panem have into the way of life of the capitol. He is a terrible person, and acts as such. He is a person who can not face his own enemies until he has complete control over them. He is seen all throughout Panem, and is clearly the biggest villain to the rebellion's propaganda team. Caesar is the spitting image of the ultimate coward, and so are most of the people living in the capitol, but he is really the only one of them that we get to see in his full atrocity. Caesar Flickerman is the ultimate coward, and this post shows proof.
In The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part One, Caesar frequently interviews Peeta. He asks Peeta unfriendly and cruel questions about topics like his love for Katniss, and his feelings about the rebels and the Hunger Games. In one case, he even has Peeta beaten by "peacekeeping troops" for telling Katniss that she is about to be attacked by nuclear weapons. Also, they turn Peeta into a living, breathing weapon, and Caesar just seems to keep being materialistic and content. Furthermore, his interviews are in front of millions of people with topics no one would want to talk about in front of anyone. Here is an excerpt from one interview. "It costs your life," says Caesar. "Oh, no. It costs a lot more than your life. To murder innocent people?" says Peeta. "It costs everything you are.""--pg 23 of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay. We can easily discern that this is because of his thoughts on his own suzerainty that he has the guts to ask this question. He would not to his equal, because he is "the ultimate coward". Grossly, the symbol of the capitol's way of life that he represents is reeking off of him in scenes like this.
Caesar is also in my opinion defamed by his nonchalant way of asking these questions. In the first two Hunger Games books, he just casually introduces twenty-four tributes that are about to fight to the death, and only one will survive. Oh, you know, just a Saturday afternoon stroll. In the interviews with Peeta, he has a fake kind of emotion that is supposed to bring the people of Panem rallying towards The Capitol's cause, but he is seeming not to want to linger too long on opinions that Peeta has that disagree with his. Again, a perfect depiction of the ultimate coward. While Peeta is getting beaten by peacekeepers, Caesar just blankly stares at the situation. He is exemplified as the person who barbarically will sit by while there is something terrible happening, and as in the Hunger Games, actually condone that act. He is a Capitol idiot, and an ultimate coward.
Caesar is the biggest window that the people of Panem have into the way of life of the capitol. He is a terrible person, and acts as such. He is a person who can not face his own enemies until he has complete control over them. He is seen all throughout Panem, and is clearly the biggest villain to the rebellion's propaganda team. Caesar is the spitting image of the ultimate coward, and so are most of the people living in the capitol, but he is really the only one of them that we get to see in his full atrocity. Caesar Flickerman is the ultimate coward, and this post shows proof.
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