History Main / WorldOfSymbolism

* ''Film/JohnWick'' and its sequel ''Film/JohnWickChapter2'' are chock-full of mythological and historical references, usually to Greek myths, fairy tales and Christianity. For example, the concierge of the Continental hotel is called Charon, ferryman of the dead in Greek mythology, signaling the parallel between the "world of the dead" of Greek mythos and the world of crime in the movie. Second movie even has two of its primary antagonists be called [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ares Ares]] and [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Cassian Cassian]] to drive the theological motifs home. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3P1ejh9pGs&t=467s One video attempts to collect all the parallels made in the first film]] and it ''still leaves quite a few out''.

Needless to say, this sort of plot [[VoodooShark can prove frustrating]] for literal-minded audiences who expect a more concrete answer to a plot hole than "because the plot hole symbolizes our inability to define existential truth". Such complaints about the story's lack of narrative logic are often dismissed by its fans with ViewersAreMorons, with fans and non-fans talking past each other and on entirely different levels. Literary allegory has been [[TropesAreNotBad a respected genre]] since about [[OlderThanDirt as long as myths have been written]], and it got its start in myths and folklore meant to both explain and symbolize the forces of nature and humanity's place in the world. [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools On the other hand]], one can argue that a modern-day author whose story doesn't hold together on every level has only written half a story; Shakespeare's plays may be full of symbolism, but they also work just as well as straightforward comedies and tragedies.

Needless to say, this sort of plot [[VoodooShark can prove frustrating]] for literal-minded audiences who expect a more concrete answer to a plot hole than "because the plot hole symbolizes our inability to define existential truth". Such complaints about the story's lack of narrative logic are often dismissed by its fans with ViewersAreMorons, with fans and non-fans talking past each other and on entirely different levels. Literary allegory has been [[TropesAreNotBad a respected genre]] since about [[OlderThanDirt as long as myths have been written]], and it got its start in myths and folklore meant to both explain and symbolize the forces of nature and humanity's place in the world. [[TropesAreTools On the other hand]], one can argue that a modern-day author whose story doesn't hold together on every level has only written half a story; Shakespeare's plays may be full of symbolism, but they also work just as well as straightforward comedies and tragedies.

* ''Franchise/MetalGear'' is a notorious example.

* The works of Creator/FranzKafka are also famous for not making sense on anything but the metaphorical level. In his case, though, even the metaphor's very much up for debate. In ''Literature/TheMetamorphosis'', Gregor Samsa turns into a giant bug. Why that happened and what it represents, if anything, is entirely up to the reader. The most common interpretation seems to be that the transformation represents mental illness and that Gregor is just imagining his transformation due to insanity but it's still debated.

* ''Anime/YuriKumaArashi''. In this case, there's a lot of allegories for Japan's view on lesbians versus how they're portrayed in works from the YuriGenre.

Fiction often works on several levels. On the one hand, you have the story that's actually being told, and the characters the story involves; on the other, you have the meaning behind the story, abstract ideas represented by the characters and symbols reflecting the story's view of the world. Even if the writer didn't intend for the story to have a deeper meaning, {{applicability}} may give it a resonance and context that goes beyond the basic plot. ''Literature/MobyDick'' is a story about an obsessed whaler hunting down a monstrous whale, but it's also about humanity railing uselessly against an uncaring universe. ''Literature/LordOfTheRings'' may have been intended just as a fantasy epic, but it has symbolic applications ranging from World War 2 to the loss of innocence.

* The ending of ''Film/SnowInAugust'', where protagonist Michael Devlin [[spoiler: is able to summon the Golem of Jewish folklore and has it beat up the Falcons (the [[TeensAreMonsters teenaged thugs that have been terrorizing him]]). He then heals Rabbi Hirsch of his extremely life-threatening injuries (inflicted by the Falcons), after which Hirsch reunites with his wife who had been killed in the Holocaust]]. The whole thing seems to have been an allegory for the healing power of religious faith and may have also been symbolic of Michael's extreme CharacterDevelopment, though some have interpreted it as] an AssPull.

* C. S. Lewis's ''Literature/ThePilgrimsRegress'', being a sort of personalized version of Pilgrim's Progress, has this.

* The ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}'' games often play this to a degree, with elements in each of the Ages relating to what the Age was about. ''MystIiiExile'' runs deliberately on this trope, given that the 4 Lesson Ages in the game were written by Atrus to teach Sirrus and Achenar about how Ages are written.

* The ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}'' often play this straight, with elements in each of the Ages relating to what the Age was about. ''MystIIIExile'' runs deliberately on this trope, given that the 4 Lesson Ages in the game were written by Atrus to teach Sirrus and Achenar about how Ages are written.

* ''Series/ThePrisoner1967'' similarly more or less defies a literal explanation, as one early episode after another seems intentionally designed to blow away any rational theory about The Village's nature. The GainaxEnding certainly didn't help matters; it's notable that the 2009 remake resolved the setting by placing it [[spoiler: within a literal world of symbols... i.e. a dream world]].

* ''Series/ThePrisoner'' similarly more or less defies a literal explanation, as one early episode after another seems intentionally designed to blow away any rational theory about The Village's nature. The GainaxEnding certainly didn't help matters; it's notable that the 2009 remake resolved the setting by placing it [[spoiler: within a literal world of symbols... i.e. a dream world]].

* ''ThePath'' runs wild with this trope, as it's a metaphorical horror take on the Red Riding Hood story. Why are six girls named after different shades of red each visiting their creepy grandmother one by one, walking through the woods alone and confronting [[spoiler:a shapeshifting being that leads them to a nightmarishly transformed version of grandma's house]]? Well, it's because the wolf represents temptation, grandma's house symbolizes death (or adulthood), the path is a metaphor for obedience, the girls embody different stages of adolescence...

* Played straight by Creator/StewartLee in his ''Comedy Vehicle'' series. when asked by Creator/ChrisMorris what he meant by a line in his standup routine, that the £200 million London skyscraper which melted a £50,000 Jaguar was a 'superb' piece of 'heavy-handed satire'. Lee admitted that he didn't know what he meant by it and he only said it because it sounded clever, then going on to say that those who laughed at the line done so 'in an attempt to pass themselves off as "clever"'.

** Bunyan also wrote a less well-known allegorical novel called ''The Holy War,'' in which [[{{God}} King Shaddai]] and his son [[{{Jesus}} Emmanuel]] fight against [[{{Satan}} Diabolus]] for rulership of the town of [[EveryoneIsJesusInPurgatory Mansoul]]. This one dispenses with the AllJustADream disclaimer, and is considered much less successful.

-->--'''Creator/IngmarBergman''', from ''The Magician''

->''Everything represents, nothing is.''

* ''VideoGame/RuleOfRose'' is arguably [[spoiler:AllJustADream]], but it's still got symbolism coming out its ears, and it's never made clear what most of it means and what actually happened to Jennifer.

* ''RuleOfRose'' is arguably [[spoiler:AllJustADream]], but it's still got symbolism coming out its ears, and it's never made clear what most of it means and what actually happened to Jennifer.
* The ''SilentHill'' series is famous for working, to some degree, on this level, though how much of it can also be explained via supernatural phenomena varies from game to game theory to theory. The second game in particular presents its story almost solely on a symbolic level. What is Pyramid Head? [[spoiler:A reflection of James' guilt, sexuality and need for punishment]]. Who is Maria? [[spoiler:An idealized yet distorted memory of his dead wife]]. Yes, but, literally, what ''are'' they and where did they come from? At the very least, you'll need information from the other games to even start making guesses.

* ''Webcomic/AxisPowersHetalia'' involves anthropomorphic embodiments of nations living lives that reflect major events in each one's history, initially focusing on WorldWar2 but eventually moving both forward and backward through history. There are some vague attempts every now and then to flesh out the setting into a more literal, realistic context, but ironically, they only make things ''more'' confusing.

* ''Anime/{{FLCL}}''. Oh, ''mamma mia'' ''FLCL''. One theory is that they took the plot of ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'', removed the depression, and condensed it down to six episodes, [[FreudWasRight without removing a single phallic symbol]].

* ''Literature/TheThingsTheyCarry'' is modern {{Surrealism}} that reaches this level, just about everything is symbolic, and the UnreliableNarrator makes it clear that fiction is sometimes truer than the truth.

* Norton Juster's ''ThePhantomTollbooth'' has the tollbooth leading to a world of pure allegory and language come to life (often in [[HurricaneOfPuns puntastic]] form). There might be magic involved with the tollbooth itself (it's not made clear), but once Milo crosses it, he's off to places like the island of Conclusions (that you arrive at only by [[IncrediblyLamePun jumping]]) on a quest to return the princesses Sweet Rhyme and Pure Reason to the kingdom of Wisdom. Yeah.