Paz uses symbolism to characterize the protagonist and warn the readers of his knowledge and his naivetés to predict upcoming his actions. This is further explained by symbolism or sharing of characteristics between the scorpion and the protagonist. A scorpion symbolizes independence, control, and transition. Both protagonist and scorpion share qualities of being defensive and act alone in certain situations. In simple term the scorpion in this story represents innocence and the state of acting on situations with a blind eye. This can be proven where he ignores the plaza owner's warning to “stay put” yet entering a situation with full warning. Both represent transition, in this case, the protagonists is becoming more experience by facing the
