Discussing symbolism in the "lesson" by Toni Cade Bambara, And of Clay are we created by Isabel Allende and Hills like white elephant by Ernest Hemingway.

Symbolism is one of the most important literary terms used often by many writers to convey their central idea. According to the Longman Contemporary Dictionary, symbolism can be defined as a device that evokes more than a literal meaning from a person, object, image or word. The author Isabel Allende in his short story, "And of Clay are we created," Toni Cade Bambara in "The lesson" and finally Ernest Hemingway the author of the short …

…is important to the development of the central idea. The object, camera is used in Allende's short story to portray how the main character tries to run away from his reality by testing different perspectives. The train station in Hemingway's "Hills like Elephants" also foreshadows the main point, that is conflict between couples and finally Bambara in "The Lesson" uses the symbol of the paperweight to show how the children might be settling for less.