Symbol Say What?

          Foster's position on symbols in this chapter is one that I find both very refreshing and enlightening. Most literature books that you read will either tell you that a symbol can only mean one thing within a story, or that it should only mean one thing. Foster, however, takes a more open approach, telling us that a symbol can mean whatever you want it to mean, as long as you base it off your experiences and instincts. He tells us to use our creativity, and to divulge all the different possible meanings of the story. For example, in the book Where the Red Fern Grows, by Wilson Rawls, there is a very iconic moment at the very end of the book, where Billy, the main character, discovers a red fern growing atop his beloved dogs' graves. Now, when I first read this part, of course, I was crying. I was thinking about how, based on the legend in the book, this fern meant that an angel was watching over his dogs, in the same way his dogs watched over him and protected him. However, when I came to class the next day, my teacher told us that it meant how even out of death there springs life. While I didn't necessarily disagree with her, it wasn't what I got from the story. Upon presenting my theory, she dismissed it and told me I had missed the point. (Great way to build up a sixth grader's confidence, huh?) I had been angry at my teacher because she told me I was wrong, but really, there wasn't a "right" answer at all. For all we knew, the fern could have symbolized how life moves on, or how, as much as Billy loved the dogs, he knows that the plants will continue to grow and the sun will continue to shine. We really don't know, but as long as the interpretation is valid and based in the text, it should be considered correct.

          Another great point that Foster makes is that while reading is a highly intellectual activity, it also relies heavily on instinct. A story becomes most powerful when it becomes personal, so by relating it to your experiences, you can connect with the story on a deeper level and come up with a meaning that's specific to you. Now, I'm not exactly sure how practical that is in a school setting, considering most teachers give tests that ask questions like, "What does the imagery in chapter 4 symbolize and why?" For example, when we read The Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, in Mrs. Gay's freshman English class, I had a really hard time on tests, because what I thought a symbol meant wasn't necessarily what she thought was correct. Looking back, I accept that I was most likely wrong in whatever I took as the "true meaning" due to the fact that Mrs. Gay and I are nowhere near the same academic level (her being much smarter than I am, obviously), but at the time, I was frustrated.  Symbols can mean so many different things, so why does there have to be a right or wrong answer in the first place? The point that Foster is trying to make in this chapter is that there doesn't.