This week: Subverted Symbolism Edited by: Jayngle Bells  
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| Hello, I'm Jayne! Welcome to my poetic explorations. My goal with these newsletters is to take us on a journey through the forms, devices, and concepts that make poetry so powerful. Sometimes, a series of newsletters will interconnect, while other issues will stand alone. I strive to ensure they are informative but fun and do my best to spark your curiosity. Don’t forget to check out this issue's curated selection of poetry! |
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As poets, we generally recognize certain elements carry expected meanings. Fire often represents passion but can also symbolize rebirth. Trees are stoic representations of strength as well as anchors of the landscape. Fog offers uncertainty about what lies beyond, and the depth of shadows creates unease about what lurks within.
But what if the tree is rotted or otherwise diseased? What if the fog wraps the reader in a wispy embrace, or a shadow is welcoming? These are simple examples of subverted symbolism. Taking a widely recognized symbol and deliberately changing its typical meaning can create new layers of meaning and interpretation and catch the reader off guard.
Why Use Subverted Symbolism?
Subverted symbolism can be a powerful way to inject irony, critique, or satire into a poem. Poets can lead the reader down one path by playing with familiar symbols, only to thwart those expectations, forcing a deeper engagement with the poem’s themes.
Examples of Subverted Symbolism
In William Blake’s "The Tyger," the tiger is not just another attempt at demonstrating ferociousness or cunning. Instead, the fearfulness is existential, with a shift from power to the duality of good and evil1 (“Did he smile his work to see?/Did he who made the Lamb make thee?”).
And while tulips are generally seen as a bright and cheerful symbol of renewal, Sylvia Plath does what Sylvia Plath does best and makes the flowers intrusive and unwelcome in “Tulips.” By juxtaposing their vibrant, lively existence with illness, their very existence becomes suffocating2 (“The vivid tulips eat my oxygen,” as she puts it).
Robert Frost’s "Nothing Gold Can Stay" takes the standard of permanence and value and makes it fragile and fleeting.3 It’s not that there’s no value in Frost’s gold since we can learn to appreciate the moments we have. However, the poem’s message of the transient nature of innocence is another example of using the familiar to create an existential crisis in the reader, no matter how beautiful the poem is. (And bless everyone who encountered the poem as teenagers via “The Outsiders.” You may still be able to recite it to this day. RIP Johnny Cade.)
Practice Subverting Your Symbols
The next time you find yourself using a symbol in your work, ask yourself—what happens if you don’t use it like everyone else? Your vision may or may not work out (especially the first draft), but you’ll never know until you try.
To begin, choose a commonly recognized symbol with a well-established meaning. This could be something from nature (a tree, a bird, a fire) or something abstract (a journey, a season). Next, decide how you could go against the grain. For example, instead of a heart bursting with love, that attachment could be causing it to wither away. Then, add some emotional complexity, such as a sunrise symbolizing the end of something rather than the beginning. Finally, consider destabilizing the reader’s experience by pairing jarring language with soft symbols or vice versa.
It doesn’t mean your poem has to be harsh. In fact, writing with subtlety and nuance can often be more effective because lulling your readers into the deeper message forces them to think more critically. It’s okay to leave them a bit uneasy—that’s the point. So, enjoy finding ways to entangle the reader in your message and invite them to reflect on what they thought they knew. Maybe you’ll find something out about yourself while you’re at it  .
1 “Source & Further Reading: “The Tyger”
2 “Source & further reading: Tulips”
3 “Source & further reading: Nothing Gold Can Stay”
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Poetry: October 09, 2024 Issue [#12775]
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