Symbolism in The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas and Sur by Guin

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Guin’s Symbolic Meanings

Symbolism is commonly used by authors that make short stories. Guin is a prime example of how much symbolism is used in short stories such as “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” and “Sur.” In both of these stories Guin uses symbolism to show hidden meanings and ideas. In “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” there is a perfect Utopian city, yet in this perfect city there is a child locked in a broom closet and it is never let out. A few people leave the city when they find out about the child, but most people stay. Furthermore, in “Sur” there is a group of girls that travel to the South Pole and reach it before anyone else, yet they leave no sign or marker at the South Pole. Guin’s stories are very farfetched and use many symbols. Both “Sur” and “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” have many symbols such as colors, characters, objects, and weather. The four types of symbols that Guin uses help the readers understand the themes in her short stories. Although her stories are farfetched, they need symbolism in them or the reader would not understand the theme; therefore the symbols make Guin’s stories much more enjoyable.

In “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” Guin uses characters as the main symbols. In this story the child locked in a cellar is the most important symbol. This locked away child is a symbol for a scapegoat. The child is a scapegoat for all the wrong and bad that happens in Omelas. Omelas is only a perfect utopia because all the blame is put on the child. “They all know that it has to be there. Some of them understand why, and some do not, but they all understand that their happiness, the beauty of their city, the tenderness of their friendships, the health of their children, the wisdom...

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...t placing a marker at the South Pole is shown to be an important symbol in this article as well. This supports my search for symbols in my stories. It also supports how the child is a symbol in this article. This article shows how “Sur” can have many hidden symbols and meanings. In this article it also supports my idea of how leaving no sign at the pole was a symbol. This article shows support for this idea by relating it to feminism and the idea that no one should have to satisfy anyone but themselves when achieving their goals.

Works Cited

Guin, Ursula. “The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas.” Print.

Guin, Ursula. “ Sur.” Print.

Khanna, Lee. “Beyond Omelas: Utopia and Gender.” (1991): 48-57. Ebscohost. Web. April 29, 2014.

Povinelli, Elizabeth. “The Child in the Broom Closet.” South Atlantic Quarterly 107.3 (2008): 509-530. Ebscohost. Web. April 29, 2014.

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