An Analysis of The Pilgrim’s Progress Essay

Irony, foreshadowing, and symbolism are all literary devices used in this story to show the consequences of blindly following tradition. This kind of tradition

Many authors who write of religious, philosophical, or moral issues frequently use symbolism and allegory to spark the reader’s interest. This style of writing builds on the emotions of the reader. It creates a visual image making the story real and believable.

Throughout history, one of the most prominent facets of any society is religion. It influences every aspect of civilization, from culture to government and from social rules to music. Literature, too, cannot escape the grasp religion holds on society. Works like Paradise Lost and The Divine Comedy show the awesome power religion inspires within people; contrastively, works like Huckleberry Finn and The Visit show the rampant cynicism religion inspires within people. Written by Swiss author Friedrich Dürrenmatt, The Visit is filled with religious symbols and references to Christianity. Instead of honoring the religion, though, the references only ridicules it.

Symbolism in literature is using an object to portray a different, deeper meaning in a story. Symbols represent ideas or qualities that the author has maneuvered into his or her story that has meaning. There can be multiple symbols in a story or just one. It is up to the reader to interpret the meaning of the symbols and their significance to the story. While reading a story, symbols may not become clear until the very end, once the climax is over, and the falling action is covered. In William Faulkner’s, “A Rose for Emily,” there are multiple examples of symbolism that occur throughout the story.

Early American literature is filled with an obvious expression of religion and its redeeming power as well as an acknowledgment of its strength to help human beings bear adversity and triumph in difficult situations. The power of religion, as expressed in early American literature deals more with a sense of

Authors may use this item to tell the story with different items and by using symbolism many

Symbolism is commonly used by authors that make short stories. Guin is a prime example of how much symbolism is used in short stories such as “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” and “Sur.” In both of these stories Guin uses symbolism to show hidden meanings and ideas. In “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” there is a perfect Utopian city, yet in this perfect city there is a child locked in a broom closet and it is never let out. A few people leave the city when they find out about the child, but most people stay. Furthermore, in “Sur” there is a group of girls that travel to the South Pole and reach it before anyone else, yet they leave no sign or marker at the South Pole. Guin’s stories are very farfetched

Upon returning from pillaging another English town, an Indian offers Mary Rowlandson a “gift” of a Bible, which he had stolen from a dead English townsperson. The usage of the word “plunder” connoted the violent force used to obtain the Bible. This enhances the significance of the irony of Rowlandson overlooking the fact that someone was murdered in order for her to receiver her “gift.” Rowlandson’s Calvinist views, which made her believe that God brought the Bible to her, outweighed any sympathy for nay anonymous English person, and the intended demographic (late 15th century Calvinists) of readers of this captivity narrative would have agreed. An alternative example presents itself when Rowlandson attempts to convince Goodwife Joslin, a very pregnant captive who was becoming impatient and wanted to go home, not to run away., “I wished her not to run away by any means […] We opened the Bible and lightened on Psalm 27 […] “Wait on the Lord, Be good of courage, and he shall strengthen thine Heart, wait I say on the Lord.” (4); Rowlandson utilizes her Bible as a tool to steer others into the light of God, whether it means deteriorating their own safety and health, proving that she will lack sympathy for humans in favor of devotion to her God.

“A Prayer for Owen Meany” by John Irving is a novel in which religion plays a significant role. One of the main themes in this novel is faith in God and faith in oneself, and the conflict between belief and doubt. It is this need for faith that brings the two main characters together. John and Owen seem to need each other and there is an odd connection between the two that is shown throughout the novel. This connection seems to “curse” them to eternal friendship and forces each other to depend on one another. There are many reasons as to why John and Owen fit together, but few stand out as primary reasons. This is a lack of guidance, religion and faith.

Symbols are important in each story to define the theme. Close observation of the symbols within each story proves to one their

Dickinson’s poem 1545 contains multiple meanings and interpretations. It is a criticism of Christianity, however, she criticizes in a rather witty way. Throughout this piece of literature, she uses words that have many meanings to dig at the bible and people’s narrow-minded beliefs within the sacred text. Dickenson also uses repetition to draw attention to certain words. Perhaps the ultimate gibe is that she takes seemingly long, complicated, and popular biblical stories and shortens them to four words or less. By doing this she gives off the impression that the “faded men” who wrote the bible are not as clever as they think; but rather they’re stories are simple and transparent.

For example, throughout the entirety of Lord of the Flies, William Golding uses symbols to advance the plot of the novel. These symbols, whether they are characters, objects, or ideas, hold the power and ability to change the course of the story. The symbols can hold many different meanings and can conflict with one another, with this new issues arise which further develops the plot of the story. As said before, Mr. Golding uses symbols in his story Lord of the Flies to control the destiny of the boys.

Symbolism is a literary technique that is used to clarify the author's intent. Sometimes it is used to great effect, while other times it only seems to muddle the meaning of a passage. In "Young Goodman Brown," Nathaniel Hawthorne uses objects and people as symbols to allegorically reveal his message to the reader.

The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan tells the story of Christian, a deeply religious man whose self-imposed pilgrimage takes him through a variety of locations in his quest to reach Celestial City. However, to better understand Bunyan's perspective on Christianity as given in his novel, we must examine the life experiences of the author. Born in 1628, Bunyan lived in a time period that was undoubtedly heavily influenced by the Reformation movement incited by Martin Luther only a century earlier. The lives of Luther and Bunyan parallel in that both disagreed with fundamental doctrines applied by the Church in their lifetime. Additionally, both were labeled as dissenters and subsequently persecuted for adhering to their own principles

People at his time indulged in plays and drama for purely earthly pleasure. This is opposed by the Puritans since it is regarded as a kind of corruption and that one could be extracted from the direction to God. But Bunyan justified that if these things are done for God, they could be accepted. The phrase "I have used similitudes" that appeared at the original cover-page of the book explains the use of similes, metaphors and other figures of language. God Himself also speaks in figurative language, not in plain language. Bunyan is going to use similitude to tell the Christians what they should do. It is therefore not for pure enjoyment to read this book. The aim of this book is to teach a religious lesson and ask people to learn from it. Bunyan went on to justify what he did by saying that God had allowed him to do so. He clarified that he was not writing to please anyone and that it should never be used as a way to show off one's ability. He also reminded people that they had to interpret the Bible for themselves for God is not always clear in what he says.