Do writers intentionally put symbols in their writing?

Question

Such as, John Steineck's "The Grapes of Wrath", there were so many symbols in that! And also, Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby" (which I absoutely adore, I think it is an amazing novel).
Do these writers, or any writers for that fact, intentionally put symbols in their writing?
It must take a lot of time to do that.

Answer 1

You can bet your life that the symbolism in "The Grapes of Wrath" was no accident, but the product of Steinbeck's genius. It is possible that you see symbols where even the author didn't, and this would be accidental, but the majority of the symbolism that you will encounter in literature is intentionally placed.

Answer 2

As an author, quite honestly I completely disagree. Quite honestly I never think about things like that. I don't sit and decide what literary techniques I will use. With the possible exception of foreshadowing, which is quite necessary in my genre which is mostly murder mystery. Otherwise, I don't sit and worry over what symbols I am using or if I am using metaphors or similes. Grapes Wrath and Great Gatsby are character driven books rather than plot driven. Meaning it is your characters who are more important. As someone who has taught literature I really hate that "find the metaphor" and "seek the symbols" stuff. I prefer people reading my work as a whole and appreciating it. When you are forced to dissect a book, you lose all possible chance for loving it. So many kids hate books like Scarlet Letter. Great Gatsby, Catcher in the Rye, because they were forced to analyze them to death instead of being allowed to enjoy the rich and beautiful prose and the great stories. Once you have fully developed characters and plot, let your story unfold like a flower. Don't worry about any of that other stuff. I don't know an author in the world who said to themselves "Gee - what symbol should I use here?" or "Would a metaphor work here?" They just write! If your technique is strong the rest just happens. I have never thought about why my lead character prefers wasabi peanuts to regular peanuts. Is that a symbol that means he is a hot and spicy kind of guy? The only times I use really think about symbolism is when it is done obviously. A cop carrying a St. Michael medal for instance. I write about people - not symbols. And my guess is John Steinbeck and Nathaniel Hawthorne did the same. The symbols just happened due to the nature of the story.

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They're, Their, There - Three Different Words.

Careful or you may wind up in my next novel.

Pax - C

Answer 3

As an author, quite honestly I completely disagree. Quite honestly I never think about things like that. I don't sit and decide what literary techniques I will use. With the possible exception of foreshadowing, which is quite necessary in my genre which is mostly murder mystery. Otherwise, I don't sit and worry over what symbols I am using or if I am using metaphors or similes. Grapes Wrath and Great Gatsby are character driven books rather than plot driven. Meaning it is your characters who are more important. As someone who has taught literature I really hate that "find the metaphor" and "seek the symbols" stuff. I prefer people reading my work as a whole and appreciating it. When you are forced to dissect a book, you lose all possible chance for loving it. So many kids hate books like Scarlet Letter. Great Gatsby, Catcher in the Rye, because they were forced to analyze them to death instead of being allowed to enjoy the rich and beautiful prose and the great stories. Once you have fully developed characters and plot, let your story unfold like a flower. Don't worry about any of that other stuff. I don't know an author in the world who said to themselves "Gee - what symbol should I use here?" or "Would a metaphor work here?" They just write! If your technique is strong the rest just happens. I have never thought about why my lead character prefers wasabi peanuts to regular peanuts. Is that a symbol that means he is a hot and spicy kind of guy? The only times I use really think about symbolism is when it is done obviously. A cop carrying a St. Michael medal for instance. I write about people - not symbols. And my guess is John Steinbeck and Nathaniel Hawthorne did the same. The symbols just happened due to the nature of the story.

Answer 4

You don't think such symbolism happens just by accident?
Of course great writers take time to weave symbolism throughout their stories.
Accidents that improve the end-product just don't 'happen' in good writing of any kind. It's intentional, you can rely on that.

Answer 5

Sometimes of course. They have to think and metaphorise and them symbolise characters with objects.
but sometimes it comes naturally. Even the common man can use a metaphor to denote an object.
Taking time will depend on the symbol they use - its accuracy and efficiency. Searching for the perfect symbol to denote an object doth taketh time.

TW K

Answer 6

i think, as an author, that modern-day writers did fairly propose to place allegory, marginally, throughout the time of their products. it is area of writing an somewhat remarkable tale. Having a great plot and vivacious vocabulary makes for an surprising tale, confident - notwithstanding it is the deeper, extra profound hidden messages that make a artwork fairly remarkable. Now then, I do even have self assurance that some symbolism that has been extracted from particular books wasn't meant to be there - it became into purely human beings exorcising their psychological creativity. so some distance as destiny generations interpreting what's now cutting-part-day literature, alongside with Harry Potter, i could wager on it. consistent with threat Harry Potter isn't the excellent occasion, yet there are fairly books that have been revealed in the final ten years that shall unquestionably be torn-aside by using destiny scholars. -Nick

Answer 7

Im sure they did a bit of thinking, yes, but also sometimes it can just come naturally! Probably does take lots of time.