AP English Literature AMSCO Guided Notes
8.2: Ambiguity and Symbols
AP English Literature Guided Notes
AMSCO 8.2 - Ambiguity and Symbols
Essential Questions
- How can a text support multiple interpretations?
- How do symbols contribute to an attitude or perspective in a text?
I. Ambiguity and Symbols
1. What is ambiguity and why is it especially important in poetry?
2. How do symbols and ambiguity allow poets to convey multiple meanings economically?
A. Ambiguity
1. In MacLeish's 'Ancestral,' what does the ambiguity of 'the one star' dissolved in evening suggest about the passage of time?
2. In MacNeice's 'Sunday Morning,' how do the multiple meanings of 'clutch' and 'windy past' work together to convey the speaker's perspective on time?
3. How can examining ambiguous words in relation to other poetic techniques help readers understand a poem's deeper meanings?
B. Symbols and Perspective
1. What is a symbol and how does it differ from a literal image or object?
2. In Li-Young Lee's 'Arise, Go Down,' what does the repeated use of roses as a symbol reveal about the speaker's attitude toward life?
3. How do the opposing forces represented by roses, birds, and closed eyes in 'Arise, Go Down' develop the speaker's perspective on the world?
4. What does the speaker's final vision of roses—seeing them in their wholeness for just a moment—suggest about his perspective on finding peace amid life's contradictions?
Key Terms
ambiguity
symbols