Symbolism

I. Symbol--A person, place, thing, or event that had meaning unto itself but also stands for something beyond that.

Is is a concrete things used to stand for a difficult to describe feeling.

A. Types of Symbols

Traditional Symbols--widely used and are almost universal
example: rose=love
Original symbols--symbols which derive their meaning from the particular work in which they are used.
example: Moby Dick just a whale, yet in the novel he represents to Ahab all that is evil in the world.
Private Symbols --symbols which are only known to the author and the people whom he has told.
example: An old family heirloom with which you associates something but nobody else will understand.

B. More symbol types

Persons
Uncle Sam=United States
George Washington=Honesty
Place
Taj Majal=love
Fort Knox=money, riches
Things
ring=fidelity, eternity
Events
shaving=adulthood
Seasons, such as spring=birth, summer=adolescence fall=middle age, winter=death

Make sure you do not over analyze a story and see every little detail as being symbolic.