Symbolism and Metaphor: They Aren’t Just For Fiction (V)

Humans are symbolic beings. We create symbols, we use them, we misuse them. In this class, we’ll first take a deep dive into the symbolic and the metaphorical in our everyday lives. We’ll analyze several examples of literary nonfiction that use the same devices fiction writers employ to layer meaning. We’ll talk about ways nonfiction writers can both deepen and complicate their own narratives and, in the process, understand the universalities embedded in our experiences.