Symbolism, A Tale of Two Stories
The two stories selected for comparison and contrast are A&P, by John Updike and The Elephant in the Village of the Blind, a version of the Buddhist story “The Blind Men and the Elephant”, that is over two thousand years old. The element chosen to explore with these two stories are symbolism. This author intends to take a different spin on the comparison and contrasting of symbolism in these two entertaining short stories. Symbolism, as defined by Merriam Webster Dictionary, “the art or practice of using symbols especially by investing things with a symbolic meaning or by expressing the invisible or intangible by means of visible or sensuous representations”. Although neither story bears any relation to …show more content…
He notices the way that each girl carries herself throughout the store while they are shopping, and denotes each one by their mannerisms and perceived social stature within their individual group. The main young woman he bestowed the title of queen on her, and noted her legs were “long white prima-donna legs”. He chose to use the symbol of a queen for her label because she appeared to be the one in charge. He used the term “long white prime-donna legs” to symbolize her apparent, and perceived, beauty along with the effortless grace with which she carried herself through the store. One of the other less attractive girls, he used the word “chunky” to symbolize her weight as being a bit more than what he thought it should be, and also as a reference to her apparent shorter stature than the other …show more content…
The short story, “The Elephant in the Village of the Blind”, carries with it a more literal use of symbolism. Here the reader is faced with people, who cannot see, and how they react when they are introduced to an elephant for the first time in their lives. This story is entertaining in understanding the authors attempt to draw the audience in by trying to understand how an elephant would be perceived by a person’s senses without vision. One of the elders compares the elephants ear to a leather fan, a wonderfully accurate symbolic interpretation. One woman used a staff to describe the elephant’s tusk. A boy though the elephant’s trunk was a water pipe. A young girl felt that the elephant’s tail was a fringed rope. Two elders though the elephant’s leg was a pillar. The final tally on the symbols they used to describe an elephant was; four pillars, a wash tub that was over turned, a water pipe, two fans, a water pipe, two staffs, and the entire elephant was covered in dried mud or hairy leather. Four of the ladies determined that an elephant was really a very large ox with a stretched out nose. Regardless of the description, all accounts were accurate in their own way. Each part of the elephant
The two stories selected for comparison and contrast are A&P, by John Updike and The Elephant in the Village of the Blind, a version of the Buddhist story “The Blind Men and the Elephant”, that is over two thousand years old. The element chosen to explore with these two stories are symbolism. This author intends to take a different spin on the comparison and contrasting of symbolism in these two entertaining short stories. Symbolism, as defined by Merriam Webster Dictionary, “the art or practice of using symbols especially by investing things with a symbolic meaning or by expressing the invisible or intangible by means of visible or sensuous representations”. Although neither story bears any relation to …show more content…
He notices the way that each girl carries herself throughout the store while they are shopping, and denotes each one by their mannerisms and perceived social stature within their individual group. The main young woman he bestowed the title of queen on her, and noted her legs were “long white prima-donna legs”. He chose to use the symbol of a queen for her label because she appeared to be the one in charge. He used the term “long white prime-donna legs” to symbolize her apparent, and perceived, beauty along with the effortless grace with which she carried herself through the store. One of the other less attractive girls, he used the word “chunky” to symbolize her weight as being a bit more than what he thought it should be, and also as a reference to her apparent shorter stature than the other …show more content…
The short story, “The Elephant in the Village of the Blind”, carries with it a more literal use of symbolism. Here the reader is faced with people, who cannot see, and how they react when they are introduced to an elephant for the first time in their lives. This story is entertaining in understanding the authors attempt to draw the audience in by trying to understand how an elephant would be perceived by a person’s senses without vision. One of the elders compares the elephants ear to a leather fan, a wonderfully accurate symbolic interpretation. One woman used a staff to describe the elephant’s tusk. A boy though the elephant’s trunk was a water pipe. A young girl felt that the elephant’s tail was a fringed rope. Two elders though the elephant’s leg was a pillar. The final tally on the symbols they used to describe an elephant was; four pillars, a wash tub that was over turned, a water pipe, two fans, a water pipe, two staffs, and the entire elephant was covered in dried mud or hairy leather. Four of the ladies determined that an elephant was really a very large ox with a stretched out nose. Regardless of the description, all accounts were accurate in their own way. Each part of the elephant