Journal #4

Symbolism is all around us. It is an idea used to invest meaning into a particular symbol or subject. We encounter symbols everyday weather we realize it or not. From religion to Disney movies we can detect certain symbolism and its specific message, much like "The Tenth of January" by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps in which she uses symbolism to convey a meaning beyond the plot and characters. For example, Phelps uses symbols and images of blood to foreshadow a change in Asenath's mind during the story. The repition of symbols is another pattern one may notice with varying authors and writters. I don't know if it's because the book was beat into my brain as a sophmore in highschool but everytime I think of symbolism I think of The Great Gatsby and the "green light." This is a great example of symbolism in which the green light represents Gatsby’s hopes and dreams for the future. The symbol is repeated throughout the book very much like Phelps symbol of blood/light/sun (bright features) in the story "The Tenth of January." One example of the blood symbol is used when the river in the story is described as bloody/red on the day of the fire. This is symbolism that not only holds a certain meaing  but also foreshadows the events of the Pemberton Mill fire.