Representation

Author’s Note: I wrote this essay to demonstrate my knowledge of  analyzing symbolism throughout a text. In this essay I talk about the symbolism throughout the main character, Kaitlin’s, journal entry in the book Scribbler of Dreams, by Mary E. Pearson.

In all writing there is symbolism, whether  we see it or not symbolism is always there and always will be. Just like the book, Scribbler of Dreams, symbolism is everywhere. The novel Scribbler of Dreams is a twist on the classic love story, Romeo and Juliet. In the book the main character Kaitlin Malone meets a boy, Bram Crutchfield, and falls in love with him. She is horrified to find out that his family and her family are enemies, and her dad is the reason his father is dead, and his father is the reason her dad’s in jail. Kaitlin must choose between her true love and her family. The creative journal entry of the main character in Scribbler of Dreams, by Mary E. Pearson, uses an abundance of symbolism throughout. 

In Kaitlin’s creative journal entry, there is an abundance of symbolism. For example when she says, “I cross a black lake with a devouring monster lurking beneath its surface” (111). Black, the color of the lake, represents evil and death. The lake she describes is a representation of death and in her case, what would happen if someone found out her secret. The monster she describes in her writing is  a representation of someone waiting for her and her lies to slip and to reveal her secret that she is trying so hard to keep. In Kaitlin’s writing, she is describing the huge trap she will fall into once her lies fall through and the truth is revealed.

Also in the journal entry, the stones are another example of symbolism throughout Kaitlin’s writing. When she says, “The stones wobble and I prepare to die, but then I regain my balance. The other side of the lake seems so far away,” the stones Kaitlin is writing about symbolize the lies she tells in order to keep her secret. This is so, because she was telling a lot of lies about what she’s doing, and who she’s seeing, to her family and to her boyfriend, Bram. When she says that the stones start to wobble, it signifies her lies starting to fall apart. She somehow manages to keeps the truth hidden, but soon her lies will win and she will fall, revealing the shocking truth of her identity to her boyfriend and her identity of her boyfriend to her family. Throughout the writing there is a lot of symbolism, which creates a lot for the reader to think about. 

Similar to Scribbler of Dreams, the novel  Hate List, by Jennifer Brown has a lot of meaningful symbolism throughout the book. Hate List, is about a girl who made a list of people and concepts she hates with her boyfriend and one day her boyfriend opened fire on the cafeteria, his targets were people on the hate list that they created together. The quote, “So I opened my trusty red notebook and numbered every line down the column of the page an started writing names of people, of celebrities, of concepts, of everything I hated,” (134) is an example of symbolism throughout the book. The color of the notebook containing the hate list in it, red, represents blood and passion, which has a lot to do with the hate list. Mostly because of all the blood that was shed the day of the shooting, but also because of the passion between the main character, Valerie, and her boyfriend, the shooter, Nick. Their passionate hate towards bullies, people and most everything in their lives that they encountered. The symbolism throughout the book, Hate List, is alike to that of the journal entry in, Scribbler of Dreams.

Symbolism in books and stories gives the reader a lot to think about and gives clues to the story and characters that you find through symbolism. The journal entry from the book, Scribbler of Dreams, shows a much deeper meaning through symbolism in Kaitlin’s words. Remember the next time you read a poem, short story, book or even journal entry, think about  the clues to the story and character that are hidden by symbolism.