My Cringy Essays

Symbolism Analysis

English 9

11/16/17

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The Symbolism of Boundaries in Connecting Pieces of Literature

Some things go together well; such as bread and butter, cake and sprinkles, wind and kites, America and barriers—wait a minute. The complication of America's obsession with pushing minorities aside has to have stemmed from the persuasiveness of media and society. We jump to any sort of conclusion or make up conspiracies as soon as rumors leak. The short story Once Upon a Time by Nadine Gordimer addresses the issue of societal boundaries through a symbolic fairy-tale format. Throughout the story, a perfect family lives happily, but in the background looms a dark and divided society. Paranoia sparks, and the family is tainted by the fear of 'the others'. The precautions they take end up causing a fatal result of the death of their son. Much like Gordimer's story, Langston Hughes writes of an infected America in his poem "Let America Be America Again", one broken apart with barriers. In Once Upon a Time, Nadine Gordimer uses symbolism in order to emphasize fear of others puts up barriers that only end up causing problems and pain.

Notably, the security system of the Dragon's Teeth in Once Upon a Time symbolizes the illusion of protection that is actually the harmful barriers we construct. Gordimer states, "...the shining coiled tunnel was just wide enough for his little body to creep in, and with the first fixing of its razor teeth in his knees and hands and head he screamed and struggle deeper into its tangle" (Gordimer 16). The quote provided was found near the end of the short story. The family had purchased an intense system of protection, and the boy had decided to play pretend and climb over the wall. The Dragon's Teeth 'bit' into him and caused the little boy to be severely harmed. Gordimer's inclusion of this section gives the reader a clear insight into how the barriers supposed to protect actually are what cause us harm. The family initially buys the security system to be safe from the outsiders, but the choice is soon proven to be fatal when their son climbs into the coils. Gordimer's use of symbolism with the wall serves to show the reality of the barriers we create in our society. The results caused by the barriers are of utmost importance. They demonstrate that while these boundaries may not physically attack us, they only exist to eventually cause destruction.

Additionally, Gordimer's short story of Once Upon a Time includes "the others" to symbolize the separation of society and racial inequality that causes the barriers. As written, "There were riots, but these were outside the city, where people of another color were quartered" (Gordimer 13). This quote was found near the beginning of the story when the situation of the society is explained. People who were colored were contained outside the city. They were feared, so people constructed walls around their houses. The author uses the symbol of the others as an example of the people who are pushed out in our society. The significance of the outsiders is that their being separated is what caused the fear to start.

In the same way, Langston Hughes' use of metaphors symbolizes how we are all equal and alike, no matter the barriers we put up. Hughes proclaims, " I am the Negro bearing slavery's scars. I am the red man driven from the land, I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek—And finding only the same stupid plan Of dog eat dog, of mighty crush the weak." (Hughes 6 - 10). The quote was found in Hughes' poem "Let America Be America Again". The poet is saying that he is multiple people to prove a point to the reader. Hughes uses metaphors to show how we are all alike. The mention of being everyone eludes to the thought of all being equal. The latter part of the sentences shows the what barriers did to harm these people of minorities. This connects with Gordimer's claim that borders cause pain to people. This poem is relevant in the way that Hughes argues that we claim to be free, but cannot truly be 'America' until we rip down our ruinous barriers that we so lovingly build.

As can be seen, Gordimer's symbols in Once Upon a Time of the Dragon's Teeth and 'the others' prove that the separation of society and inequality causes barriers that give us an illusion of being protected. As is now known, that thinking turns out to be false. Hughes solidifies the idea by using metaphors in his poem, "Let America Be America Again", to show how we are all equal to one another. The symbolism and metaphors used emphasize paranoia towards certain people create boundaries that only stand to result in dilemmas and torment. To put it all in perspective, every society, especially the Americans, needs to confront the ever-growing problem of barriers being created. If this were assessed, then there could possibly be more equality in our world than there is today.