What is a symbol?

The definition that Cambridge Dictionary provides searching for the word Symbolism,
suggest a more complex meaning or range of meanings, addition to its literal meaning.
Moreover, we can find many kind of symbols looking at pictures, sculptures, architecture,
and ornaments on objects of daily use. As a result of the big symbols’ number on the
society, literature, etc. We have 3 kinds of symbols (IUPUI, 2015): “Universal or
archetypal symbol”, such as: Grim Reaper, a symbol from the death; “Conventional
Symbol”, suggest the same thing to people on the same culture assumption, in our case,
a rose tries to say love or a cross makes a catholic religion’s symbol; and the “Literary or
contextual symbol”, this last depends upon the context of the story for its meaning, could
seems at first, however it doesn’t have a clear significance, however, it comes through
emphasis, the repetition or when the symbol is the key for understand any story’s success.
Symbolism can get different forms. Generally, it is an object representing another, to give
an entirely different meaning that is much deeper and more significant. However, this
technique is not a comparison to give a general meaning. It’s a metaphor, and its common
confuse it whit a symbol. Metaphor also could have different ways to understand it. For
a symbol, we will need just one meaning, according to the context, to understand the
story, in case of a book.
Besides, is also current confuse a symbol whit an allegory. This last focuses on represent
things by means of symbols (Dictionary.com, 2018). In fact, either symbolism or an
allegory are related. Both are intended to convey a meaning that is different from what is
presented directly. However, the principal difference is, while an allegory is represented
by stories which share a clarify message, a symbol is a particular object. I found some
examples, in order to explain this difference. For the symbolism, a dove is a common
symbol to share peace on any context; and for the allegory, the trilogy “The Hunger
Games”, wrote by Suzanne Collins, “Is an allegory for our obsession with reality
television and how it numbs us to reality”. (Matthew Leyland, 2012)
What is the literary symbolism?
If we talk the symbolism on literature, we refer about a poems, speeches, or in this case
stories where a symbol (could be a character or an object), gets a more symbolic meaning.
Additionally, this work I is based on this kind of symbolism. Fahrenheit 451 has a lot of
objects that could be a symbol. According whit the page “learnstrong.com”, there is 4
generals’ kinds of literary symbols: Christianism, seasons, colour and popular meanings.
Furthermore, the book has its own symbols, as all book do. I try to say that, the generals’
symbols on literature many times define the way of sense of the book’s symbols (Boon
James. A 1972)