“That’s just cheesy,” the author sighs, pressing down the backspace key. Suddenly, he smirks, typing furiously as he writes in just a subtle detail that says a million words. Often, while reading, people find that certain objects, actions, and colors repeat throughout the story for seemingly no reason. Throughout literature, many authors use these mundane, repetitive objects to add a deeper meaning to their story and give readers a better understanding of the literature. One example of symbolism is the use of water and baptism within a story to symbolize life, rebirth, renewal, or redemption. Using this idea of water to symbolize rebirth numerous times, is the novel Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler, which contains countless symbols and frameworks for a deep, intricate story. …show more content…
To elaborate, Tyler uses a plethora of symbols within her novels. Of these, water and weather, two very important and telling symbols, can go hand in hand. For example, a drought within Saint Maybe uses the weather and lack of water to add meaning to the story. To illustrate, when confronted about the state of the house, Daphne responds with, “‘Well it’s not as bad as it looks… There’s been a drought, for one thing. I mean, the grass isn’t really our fault” (Tyler 273). In this, Tyler uses the weather in order to highlight the sins and monotony of life without Bee Bedloe, the wife, mother, and grandmother to the people within the family. So, with the absence of water, Tyler conveys the feeling of a life without life or a monotone life without happiness or color. With this, Tyler uses water to add another meaning onto the seemingly normal