Complex (but simple) Symbolism: The Parables of Jesus

Having trouble understanding symbolism?

One of the easiest exercises to grasp how symbolism works--that is, objects or persons or things representing something beyond the literal object or person or thing--is to look at the familiar parables of Jesus found in the New Testament. Kennedy and Gioia include two very familiar biblical parables in your textbook:

• "The Parable of the Good Seed" (Page 646)
• "The Parable of the Prodigal Son" (Page 190)

Before you read the parables, look up both "allergory" and "parable" in the glossary of literary terms in your text (or look up the words on the Internet). You will how characters, places, and events in a parable have meaning on a literal level as well as a symbolic level.

If you'd like to look at a website that has links to parables as well as a discussion of what a parable is and how it relates to understanding symbolism, click here.

If you'd like to check out a multimedia version of the famous Parable of the Good Samaritan, click here.

Literary Analysis #3 will provide you an opportunity to write about symbolism in some of the selections you've read in the course, including the possibility of writing to explain one of these parables. If the idea of writing about one of the parables in Kennedy and Gioia's text appeals to you, be thinking along those lines. (But remember you have Lit. Analysis #2 to tackle before that! LOL).

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