Symbolism In Remembering Babylon By David Malouf

In the book, Remembering Babylon, David Malouf used symbolism throughout the novel to show meanings of each character. One of the major symbols in the novel is the bees, and it is expressed throughout the novel with knowledge. Mrs. Hutchence and Janet are symbolized by the bees through womanhood. Gemmy and Jock are symbolized by the bees through knowledge. The settlers and Gemmy are symbolized by the bees through acceptance. In Remembering Babylon, Malouf uses the bees as symbols to comment on how life and knowledge is gained and passed on in the novel. As previously stated, the bees are a main symbol for Mrs. Hutchence and Janet in the novel. We do not see the bees appear until chapter 8 in the novel and we first see them with elusive …show more content…
Jock’s neighbors are always on the lookout for Gemmy and what problems he might bring to the community, but they are only imagining all of these problems. Andy is called an “Imaginitis” (p. 101) because he is always making up lies and stories about Gemmy that are never true. That is why he is called an imaginitis because he imagines problems rather than just opening his eyes and seeing what really happening. With Andy making up stories and problems happening around the community, Jock begins to feel scared. The quote “Jock, however, was determined to insist for as long as he could that there was a reasonable centre to things, though he too had been shaken in these last months; not by what Gemmy threatened but by what he had begun to see in others” (p. 103) shows a community that once was a team and worked together begins to fall apart slowly. This is the complete opposite of a bee’s community and happens because they do not understand the meaning of life in Australia. They are disrespectful to the Aborigines and also they fail to gain knowledge of their land and their people, and with this we see a fragile community starting to break …show more content…
It can create this larger world, a truth that everyone seeks, will make us finally understand the meaning of life. Malouf uses bees to not only symbolize life but also to show that bees create and build and work together as one. He is symbolizing them to life because in life you don’t always get what you want but you still work until then. Bees work and work every day of their lived but unlike us humans, we take advantage of others and with his we will never understand the meaning of life. The whole time Janet just wanted to know what else is out there for her and the capabilities she possess to do what she was meant to do. The settlers of the community are the bees and they work together to hold up and maintain this fragile community that was soon to fall apart because they fail to understand the meaning of