Symbolism

The term “symbolism” was extremely common in the literature of mystic groups for whom

the climate of romanticism was propitious: they spoke of symbols in connection with the so

called “universal analogy” with reference to the introductory revelation handed down to

posterity, under the guise of various religions, mythologies, and sacred figures. The very

word ‘symbolism’ is derived from Greek verb “Symbollein”, means ‘to put together’. In short

symbolism is the representation of objects, moods and ideas through the medium of symbols.

The cornerstone of the edifice of modern school of symbolism on whose construction,

various artisans later worked without a unified and precise plan, was a sonnet by

Baudelaire,overflowing with interior music, but primarily destined to establish an esoteric

indoctrinationas it is stated by the title “Les Correspondences”.

A concise and useful introductory look at Symbolism is offered in Wellek and

Warren’s Theory of Literature. In this book a necessary distinction is made between sign and

symbol and the latter is defined as “an object which refers to another object but which

demands attention also in its own right, as a presentation”. A closer look is taken by Northrop

Frye in an article “Three Meanings of Symbolism” and he points the movement in modern

literature including prominently Joyce and Proust, which establishes a “unification of

sensibility” by bringing together the two currents symbolism and naturalism, and there is a

corresponding movement in criticism. A corollary phenomenon is the dialectical union of

these two aspects of language- centripetal and centrifugal (symbol and sign) in the higher

synthesis of “archetypal symbolism”.

W.B Yeats, being a developing poet and aesthetic theorist, in the eighteen- nineties

was interested in the possibilities and effects of the symbolism of sound. His poetry is replete
with symbols and he has been hailed as the chief representative of the Symbolist Movement

in English Literature. As a man who embraced the ancient theory of correspondences, Yeats

did a chapter titled “The Necessity of Symbolism” in the Works of William Blake (1893). In

this chapter, one could see the advantages of employing a patterned, rhythmical musical

structure to portray the ultimate reality. In the opinion of Yeats, especially after the turn of

the century, the artist could use a variety of art forms to foster the harmony and symbolic

power of his own particular art. According to Walter Pater, each art inclined towards unity

with other arts. Yeats’s symbols are derived from occult studies which comprises the

fascination of fairies, astrology, automatic writing and prophetic dreams. He was very much

influenced by French writers but his symbolism was based on the poetry of Blake, Shelley

and Rossetti. According to Yeats, symbols give voices to dumb things; it gives body to the

bodiless things. ‘Rose’ is one of the greatest and complex symbols of Yeats. His early

symbols were simple and traditional. His ‘Innisfree’ symbolizes a country where one can live

peacefully. In “Rose of Peace”, Yeats used Rose as the earthly love or spiritual beauty. Tower

is another significant symbol and it symbolizes spiritual worship. In “A Prayer for My

Daughter”, the Tower symbolizes the dark future for mankind. In “Sailing to Byzantium”,

Byzantium became the symbol of perfection, free of the cycle of birth, generation and death,

free from time for it is a world or art and ideal existence.

“The Second Coming” is his poem enriched with symbols. The symbol of bird is one

of the most important symbol of Yeats. A symbol of ‘falcon’ is very prominent and

contributes much to the poems essence. He presents a disintegrating and chaotic world in this

poem.

Turning and turning in the widening gyre

The falcon cannot hear the falconer;

 Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;

Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world, (1-4)

“There was in symbolism an immortal soul and since the great problems which it

posed did not find an adequate solution within its framework, there is every reason to believe

that in a more or less distant future and in a different guise there will occur a purer

manifestation of “eternal symbolism” says Vyachesalav Ivanov and Thomas E Bird in their

article titled “Symbolism”.

Works Cited

Ivanov, Vyacheslav. Thomas, E Bird. “Symbolism”. The Russian review 25(1966):

24-34. JSTOR. Web. 11 Aug. 2017.

Cohn, Robert G. “Symbolism”. The Journal of Aesthetic and Art Criticism.

33(1974):181-192.JSTOR. Web. 11 Aug. 2017.

Lenoski, Daniel. “The Symbolism of Rhythm in W. B Yeats”. Irish University

Review. 7 (1977): 201-212.JSTOR. Web. 11 Aug. 2017.