
Everything around us can be a symbol, and everything around us can be represented by a symbol. Yet, symbols mean different things to everyone. These varying interpretations simply depend on who the reader interpreting the symbol is. According to Thomas Foster’s, “Is That a Symbol?” symbols depend on a variety of individual characteristics. This means that all individuals will have a different perspective on a symbol. Authors insert symbols into their writings and leave them for open interpretation for the readers. Foster shows readers by using texts to prove his point that no symbol has one specific meaning.

All individuals will have their own opinion on a symbol. People shape their thoughts using many different tools. According to Foster, “questions, experience, preexisting knowledge” (Foster) are all tools that people use to shape their perspective on a symbol. Everyone has a different opinion. This is the result of different thoughts from events that happened to the individual in his/her past. Readers use their own personal experiences as a way to make sense of a symbol. For instance, in the example of the cave that Foster uses, someone may have had a somewhat significant experience in a cave. Maybe the reader has had a traumatic experience in a cave where they may have been hurt or lost. To them, the cave may be a symbol of fear. This will be different for each individual reader. A reader may also use their previous knowledge and experiences of caves. Foster relates his example to human ancestry, “first, consider our past. Our earliest ancestors, or those who had weather issues, lived in caves” (Foster). He then goes on to explain how readers may think of cavemen when trying to connect the symbol of a cave to something they might be able to relate to. A reader may think the cave symbolizes a new home, similar to what a caveman might think. Another reader may think the cave symbolizes fear, making a connection that caves are perceived to be dark and scary. Many aspects can contribute to one’s understanding of a symbol. Authors may lead readers to think a certain way using subtle hints to guide a reader. A symbol can also derive from a reader’s questions. A reader may ask questions while reading and it may help them come to the conclusion about the meaning of a symbol. In the case of the cave, a reader may question what the cave is like, how dark or intimidating the cave is. This will make the reader visualize what the cave looks like, which may represent what the cave symbolizes to them. A reader can say a symbol represents any number of meanings, as long as they provide the evidence to back up their claims. This concept is what Foster wants to drive home to readers. In the cave example, Foster limits what the symbol of a cave means to readers. By giving detail and particular word choice, he is able to give imagery to what the cave is like. This gives a basis for what the reader is to think. Their interpretation of the cave is for their own imagination. 

Stories that contain symbols are created to explain an overall theme and leaving the specific message up to the reader. This is what makes symbolism so versatile. As Foster puts it, “symbols, though, generally don’t work so neatly” (Foster). By this he means that symbols have a deeper complexity and understanding than allegories. Readers must think more when they encounter a symbol. An allegory gives the reader the answer in the context of the reading. If there is no clear evidence, the allegory fails, “if there is ambiguity or a lack of clarity regarding that one-to-one correspondence between the emblem – the figurative construct – and the thing it represents, then the allegory fails because the message is blurred” (Foster 18). Allegories are meant to be straight forward with no hidden meanings; they are meant to have one solid answer. A symbol, on the other hand, gives the reader the main idea, but they must find the deeper meaning within their personal thoughts. These personal thoughts distinguish individuals, showing that a symbol has no particular meaning.

The wide availability for meanings of a symbol can lead to confusion among readers when trying to interpret the symbol. Foster emphasizes this, “the problem of symbolic meaning is further compounded when we look at a number of writers emphasizing various, distinct elements for a given symbol” (Foster). He then gives multiple examples where rivers hold different meanings, even having various meanings within a single story. First he uses Mark Twain’s novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885), to show that Twain gave the river multiple meanings. According to Foster, “the river is both danger and safety, since the relative isolation from land and detection is offset by the perils of river travel on a makeshift conveyance” (Foster). This is Foster’s personal perspective on Twain’s symbol of the river. Another reader may believe that the river symbolized a new beginning, leaving destruction from the flood behind to find a new home. Or maybe the river may not have a meaning at all. It all depends on what the reader imagines when they read the text. This can cause confusion for readers. If the author is too broad with their symbols, readers may stray away from the point that the writer is trying to convey. Foster then talks about how a river might have a completely different meaning in another writing, “the Mississippi becomes of central symbolic importance for Crane because of its immense length, bringing the northernmost and southernmost parts of the nation together” (Foster). In Crane’s poem, The Bridge (1930), the Mississippi river can represent unity in the United States. This contradicts the symbolic representation of the Mississippi river in Mark Twain’s, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1885), where the river goes deeper into slave territory, a time in the history of the United States where citizens were divided. A symbol must be read in context of the situation, but it is the readers decision what the symbol represents in the story. Giving the reader some leeway allows them to use their imagination and gives options for what they believe a symbol means. However, by not being direct enough, readers can be misguided and lose track of what the symbol is and how it relates to the overall message of the story.

Who’s to say that any particular concept is not a symbol? An individual can identify any word as a symbol if it symbolizes something meaningful to them while they are reading. It is up to the reader to decide whether or not a word or phrase is significant enough to be a symbol. After that, it is up to the reader’s imagination to figure out what the symbol means to them. The unique experiences, opinions, and thoughts any reader has contributes to the different meanings that can be connected to a single symbol.