One Unity; Individual Importance

ENG 12 Myth 02: page 13

SYMBOLS—Listed below are some basic symbols and their meanings. This is not intended as an all-inclusive list, but as a sampling of the many kinds of symbols that exist throughout the world.

NUMBERS

·  One—unity; individual importance

·  Two—balance; yin/yang

·  Three—trinity; holiness

·  Four—order; symmetry

·  Five—humankind (5 fingers, toes, senses; 4 limbs and a head; the universe

·  Six—harmony; balance (two 3’s)

·  Seven—entirety; 7 planets; Biblical creation

·  Eight—universal order (two 4’s)

·  Nine—harmony; perfection (three 3’s)

·  Ten—spiritual achievement; wholeness

·  Eleven—purity; “light-bearer”

·  Twelve—universal fulfillment; the four points of the compass (Earth) times the Trinity (Heaven)

·  Thirteen—unlucky; death

·  Forty—spiritual order (four times ten; often used Biblically

COLORS

·  White—purity, peace, simplicity

·  Black—power, fear, darkness, evil, death, mourning

·  Gray—ambiguity, uncertainty, sadness

·  Red—danger, energy, passion, love, rage, warfare

·  Blue—serenity, calmness, peace, stability, keeps away evil

·  Green—growth, renewal, nature, healing, new life, envy

·  Yellow—happiness, friendship, joy, wisdom, hope

·  Purple—royalty, richness, spirituality, ceremony

·  Orange—warmth, balance, enthusiasm, strength, creativity

VEGETATION / TREES

·  Apple—fertility, temptation

·  Grapes—abundance

·  Peach—marriage

·  Cherry—immortality

·  Plum—independence

·  Pine—immortality, steadfastness

·  Acorn—potential

·  Poppy—sleep

·  Lily—purity

·  Rose—love

·  Daisy—innocence

·  Olive—peace

·  Oak—strength

·  Cypress—death

·  Palm—protection

·  Cedar—incorruptible

ANIMALS & CREATURES

·  Dog—loyalty Whale—power

·  Cat—malevolence, spite Shell—good luck

·  Cow—motherhood Conch shell—power of sound

·  Bull—fertility Snail—renewal, slowness

·  Pig—greed, filth Rooster—morning, fire

·  Donkey—stubbornness, stupidity Peacock—royalty

·  Ram—virility Ostrich—stupidity, timidity

·  Sheep—blindness Cuckoo—spring, adultery

·  Snake—sneakiness, Satan Dove—peace

·  Crocodile/alligator—death Swan—grace

·  Turtle—wisdom, perseverance Stork—good luck

·  Fish—faith, sustenance, Jesus Spider—life, fate

·  Seahorse—good luck Ant—industriousness

SHAPES / SEASONS

·  Circle or wheel—cycle of life, eternity Fog—unreality, uncertainty

·  Triangle—trinity, creation, illumination Clouds or mist—concealment

·  Square—security, structure, order Rainbow—peace, harmony

·  Cross—honor, balance, choice Mountain—stability, strength

·  Crown—royalty, nobility Elements—earth, air, fire, water

·  Sun—happiness, light, masculine Spring—birth, life

·  Moon—enlightenment, cyclical, feminine Summer—growth, ripening

·  Star—divine presence Fall--maturity

·  Rain—life, sustenance, cleansing Winter—old age, death

MOTIFS

A motif is a recurrent symbol (usually), but can also be an image, object, phrase, word, incident, action, or device that is used to unify a work of literature. A motif is important because it allows one to see main points and themes that the author is trying to express. Certain motifs occur frequently and are repeated in many works. Often, motifs are evident in movies. The old Jaws movies used music as a motif—every time the Jaws theme resounded in the background and then increased in volume and pace, you knew something treacherous lurked beneath the waves. Another example is from the James Bond movies, where the phrase “Bond, James Bond” is repeated. A motif occurs several times within a work, whereas a symbol may occur only once. Below are some examples of motifs in literature.

·  Water in the Old Testament

·  Disguises in The Odyssey

·  Lies and cons in Huckleberry Finn

·  Light and dark imagery in Romeo and Juliet

·  Whiteness in Moby Dick

·  The color green in The Matrix

·  The use of black and white clothing in Star Wars

·  Oranges in The Godfather

·  The hero’s quest in much of mythology

RECOGNIZING SYMBOLS

This passage is from Macbeth when the title character is preparing to kill his cousin, the king, even as Duncan is a guest sleeping in Macbeth’s home.

“Is this a dagger which I see before me,

The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch the.

I have thee not, and yet I see thee still.

Art thou not, fatal vision, sensible

To feeling as to sight, or art thou but

A dagger of the mind, a false creation,

Proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain?

I see thee yet, in form as palpable

As this which now I draw.

Thou marshal’st me the way that I was going;

And such an instrument I was to use.

Mine eyes are made the fools o’ th’ other senses,

Or else worth all the rest. I see thee still;

And on thy blade and dudgeon gouts of blood,

Which was not so before. There’s no such thing.

It is the bloody business which informs

Thus to mine eyes….”

Symbol: the dagger

Meaning: The dagger stands for itself, in this case an “instrument” for Macbeth to use in the impending murder. But since it is also a “dagger of the mind,” both the reader and Macbeth know that it also represents the evil involved in this act. The dagger seems to be real, but he knows that it is simply a product of his “heat-oppressed brain,” making him see things that are not there. On one hand, he thinks the dagger is pointing him in the direction of Duncan’s room and luring him onward. On the other hand, he thinks the dagger is “no such thing” because the deed he is about to perform is causing him to see something that is not there. Interestingly, he doesn’t even think that maybe some other powers are at work. So this dagger is a symbol of itself as well as a symbol of the deterioration of Macbeth’s mind.

This passage is from The Jungle by Upton Sinclair, who wrote this award-winning novel after witnessing the appalling condition of slaughter houses in mid-20th century America.

“One could not stand and watch very long without becoming philosophical, without beginning to deal in symbols and similes, and to hear the hog-squeal of the universe. Was it permitted to believe that there was nowhere upon the earth, or above the earth, a heaven for hogs, where they were requited for all this suffering? Each one of these hogs was a separate creature. Some were white hogs, some were black; some were brown, some were spotted; some were old, some were young; some were long and lean, some were monstrous. And each of them had an individuality of his own, a will of his own, a hope and a heart’s desire; each was full of self-confidence, of self-importance, and a sense of dignity. And trusting, and strong in faith he had gone about his business, all the while a black shadow hung over him, and a horrid Fate waited in his pathway. Now suddenly it had swooped upon him, and had seized him by the leg. Relentless, remorseless, it was; all his protests, his screams, were nothing to it—it did its cruel will with him, as if his wishes, his feelings, had simply no existence at all; it cut his throat and watched him gasp out his life.”

Symbol: ??

Meaning: ??

ARCHETYPES

The “Archetype” is a term coined by Carl Jung. It is defined as “the first original model of which all other similar persons, objects, or concepts are merely copied. The pattern of an archetype derives from a “universal collective unconscious”—something beyond individual experience. Archetypes are found everywhere, as their symbols are a language of the mind.

JUNG'S FOUR MAIN FORMS OF ARCHETYPES:

1.  The Self—it signifies the coherent whole, unified consciousness and unconscious of a person. The self is symbolized by the circle (especially when divided in four quadrants), the square, or the mandala.

2.  The Shadow—the part of the unconscious mind which is mysterious and often disagreeable to the conscious mind. The shadow is instinctive and irrational, but is not necessarily evil even when it might appear to be. It is important as a source of hunches, and for understanding one's own inexplicable actions and attitudes (and of others' reactions).

3.  The Anima—the feminine side of a male's unconscious mind. It can be identified as all the unconscious feminine psychological qualities that a male possesses. The anima is usually an aggregate of a man's mother but may also incorporate aspects of sisters, aunts, and teachers.

4.  The Animus—a set of unconscious masculine attributes and potentials. He viewed the animus as being more complex than the anima. The animus is considered to be the natural and primitive part of the mind's activity.

JUNG’S HEROIC ARCHETYPES:

1.  The Innocent

2.  The Orphan

3.  The Warrior

4.  The Caregiver

5.  The Seeker

6.  The Lover

7.  The Destroyer

8.  The Creator

9.  The Ruler

10.  The Magician

11.  The Sage

12.  The Fool

Archetypes are somewhat more difficult to understand than symbols and motifs. The concept of archetypes was developed by Carl Jung who believed we all have a “collective unconscious” consisting of character types, plots, and patterns common to any culture in any time. Certain images and patterns are embedded in our past experiences, and we expect them (at the sub-conscious level) to re-occur. And they often do in our literature. For example, the most common archetypal character is that of the hero. Like other archetypal characters, a hero is recognized in any culture, any age. Listed below are several examples of well-known archetypal characters.

·  Hero—usually rises from a rather lowly birth to become a leader or king after facing many trials. Examples of this type of hero are Jesus, King Arthur, Harry Potter, Beowulf. Another type of hero is the young person from the provinces who is taken from home and returns with a new perspective. Examples include Tarzan, Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, Alice from Alice in Wonderland.

·  Initiate—an innocent who trains for a quest. Luke Skywalker, Aragorn from Lord of the Rings.

·  Mentor—teacher or counselor of the initiate. Yoda, Gandolf.

·  Benevolent guide—usually an older person who gives the hero wise counsel. Merlin, fairy godmothers.

·  Shaman—protector of rituals and traditions. Witch doctor, Rafiki in The Lion King.

·  Companions—friends who are loyal to the hero at all costs. Robin Hood’s merry men.

·  Friendly beast—helps the hero. Chewbacca, Toto.

·  Trickster—a wise fool, a rascal, a troublemaker. Jar Jar Binks in Star Wars, Loki in Norse mythology.

·  Devil figure—purely evil. Satan, Sauron from Lord of the Rings.

·  Evil figure with an ultimately good heart—redeems him/herself by the end of the story. Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, Darth Vader in Star Wars.

·  Scapegoat—sacrificed animal or human who takes on the sins and punishment for others. Jesus, Tom Robinson in To Kill a Mockingbird, Charlie Brown in the Peanuts comic strip, Snowball in Animal Farm.

·  Outcast—a character who is banished from society. Quasimodo from The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Piggy from Lord of the Flies.

·  Star-crossed lovers—fate is against the young couple. Romeo and Juliet, Donkey and Dragon from Shrek.

·  Earth mother—a female influence, powerful, provides life, care, nourishment, wisdom. The Virgin Mary, Galadriel in Lord of the Rings, Mother Goose, “Q” in the James Bond films.

·  Temptress—beautiful woman who brings about the downfall of the hero. Helen of Troy, Delilah, Cleopatra, the Sirens in The Odyssey.

·  Damsel in Distress—a (usually) woman who must be rescued by the hero who comes to her aid. Fiona in Shrek, Guinevere, Princess Leia in Star Wars (who then goes on to save her companions).

·  Young Person from the Provinces – This hero is taken away as an infant or youth and raised by strangers. He or she later returns home as a stranger and able to recognize new problems and new solutions.

·  Loyal Retainers – These individuals are like the noble sidekicks to the hero. Their duty is to protect the hero. Often the retainer reflects the hero’s nobility.

·  The Creature of Nightmare – This monster, physical or abstract, is summoned from the deepest, darkest parts of the human mind to threaten the lives of the hero/heroine. Often it is a perversion or desecration of the human body.

ARCHETYPAL SITUATIONS

·  Initiation—a “calling,” where an individual understands his/her responsibility; often a rite of passage into adulthood. Huckleberry Finn, King Arthur, Harry Potter.

·  Quest—the search for someone or something needed to save the day. The Holy Grail, the Ring.

·  Task—an extraordinary feat which must be accomplished to save the day. Arthur pulls the sword from the stone, Ripley kills the creature in Alien.

·  Journey—the difficulties which the hero must undergo to accomplish the task. Usually involves traveling. The Odyssey, Shrek.

·  Ritual—an official ceremony; may be part of the initiation or rite of passage. Weddings, graduations, funerals, etc.

·  Fall—a loss of innocence or a fall from grace which often includes expulsion from paradise. Adam and Eve, many politicians, Tiger Woods

·  Death—like in the cycles of nature, an actual or spiritual death; equated with the seasons of fall and winter, and the evening and night.

·  Rebirth—again like nature, renewal; equated with spring and summer and the morning.

·  Magic weapon—usually bestowed by a mentor to the hero. Excalibur, light sabers in Star Wars.

·  Unhealable wound—may be physical, mental, or emotional. Ahab’s wooden leg in Moby Dick, Elie Wiesel’s emotional pain in Night

·  Supernatural intervention—the gods help or hinder the hero. The Trojan War, The Odyssey

·  Sacred marriage—the joining, often of opposites, which restores peace. Beauty and the Beast, Shrek, Star Wars.

·  Battle between good and evil—classic, epic theme for most all of literature. Good “always” prevails. Many cartoons and movies. God vs. Satan, Star Wars, Aliens

·  Parent versus child conflict—another classic theme evident throughout literature. Luke vs. Darth Vader, Greek mythology creation stories

·  Natural world opposed to mechanical world or technology—usually nature is “good” and “pure,” while technology is “evil.” The Terminator, The Matrix.

·  Innate wisdom versus educated stupidity—some characters, though ignorant, exhibit a natural wisdom. This is often shown in animals. Others, though educated, have no “street smarts” and make poor decisions. Shrek, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

·  Light versus dark—light represents hope and illumination while dark indicates hopelessness and the unknown. Light shines from heaven to indicate goodness; characters are often drawn into evil darkness. Romeo and Juliet, Star Wars.