Artistic symbol

In works of art, literature, and narrative, a symbol is a concrete element like an object, character, image, situation, or action that suggests or hints at abstract, deeper, or non-literal meanings or ideas.However, it also may be decided upon by the audience or by a consensus of scholars through their interpretation of the work.Some symbolism appears commonly in works of poetry, fiction, or visual art.For instance, scholars widely consider references to blood in the play Macbeth by William Shakespeare to be symbolism for the main character's violent behavior and his accompanying guilt.[3] In the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the image of huge bespectacled eyes on a billboard may be interpreted as symbolizing the gaze of God.
Symbolism (movement)literaturenarrativeconcretesymbolsnarrative deviceinterpretationsynonymsartistic mediumnational flagscolor symbolismMacbethWilliam ShakespeareThe Great GatsbyF. Scott FitzgeraldCornell UniversityCharacterAntagonistArchenemyCharacter arcCharacter flawCharacterizationConfidantDeuteragonistFalse protagonistFocal characterGothic doubleHamartiaByronicTragicNarratorProtagonistStock characterStraight manSupporting characterTitle characterTritagonistVillainAb ovoActionBackstoryOrigin storyChekhov's gunClichéCliffhangerConflictDeus ex machinaDialogueDramatic structureEucatastropheForeshadowingFlashbackFlashforwardFrame storyIn medias resKishōtenketsuMacGuffinPlot devicePlot twistPoetic justiceRed herringRevealSelf-insertionShaggy dog storyStereotypeStory arcStory within a storySubplotSuspenseSettingAlternate historyCrossoverDreamworldDystopiaFictional locationcountryuniverseparallelUtopiaWorldbuildingLeitmotifMetaphorMoral developmentDeal with the DevilConflict between good and evilSelf-fulfilling prophecyTime travelAllegoryBathosComic reliefDictionFigure of speechImageryNarrationNarrative techniquesShow, don't tellStylistic deviceSuspension of disbeliefSymbolismStructureAct structureThree-act structureFreytag's PyramidExpositionProtasisRising action/EpitasisClimaxPeripeteiaFalling action/CatastasisDenouement/CatastropheLinear narrativeNonlinear narrativetelevision seriesPremiseTypes of fiction with multiple endingsFabliauFlash fictionFolkloreFairy taleLegendTall taleGamebookNarrative artNarrative poetryEpic poetryNovellaParableShort storyVignetteFictionAction fictionAdventureEpistolaryErgodicEroticHistoricalWesternMysteryNauticalParanoidPhilosophicalPicaresquePoliticalPop culturePsychologicalReligiousRomanceChivalricSatireSpeculative fictionFantasyGothicSouthernHorrorMagic realismScienceUtopian and dystopianUnderwaterSuperheroTheologicalThrillerNonfictionAutobiographyBiographyCreativeDiegesisFirst-personSecond-personThird-personThird-person omniscient narrativeUnreliable narratorMultiple narratorsStream of consciousnessStream of unconsciousnessPresentFutureDominant narrativeFiction writingContinuityRebootRetconParallel novelPrequelSequelLiterary scienceLiterary theoryNarrative identityNarrative paradigmNarrative therapyNarratologyMetafictionPolitical narrativeRhetoricGlossaryScreenwritingStorytellingTellabilityVerisimilitude