I have never been a poet, nor have I been a writer. When in college I wrote about topics that someone else chose for me. For the most part, I was given thesis ideas and asked to expound on them. I often struggled in Religion and English classes to look far past the metaphysical and find some inner being for the struggles or tribulations a character faced or find symbolism in a tree, or an apple, or any object that could have a far more in depth meaning that the author described.
My inability to look this closely into stories was directly linked with the fact I was a "factual" person. I find it much more exhilarating to research a historical topic, and base my own ideals around what happened and form my own stories about history. See with history it is a well known fact that the victors write the history books. They tell the story as they see fit, but is often forgotten how the "losers" came about, as they only tell their story. That is why we have lost societies, the losers were not left to tell their tale, their faults, their defense. We just let the kings and nobles and historians to depict them in whatever light, whether negative or positive, they see fit.
I have officially strayed far from what I had on my mind to write. With history, I can quickly veer off topic. Needless to say, I'm neither a creative or symbolic writer, but recently the symbolism behind a certain animate object has struck a far deeper yearn inside of me.
The symbolism behind a bird. What is a bird?
According to Websters', there is the literal meaning behind a bird: any warm-blooded vertebrate of the class Aves, having a body covered with feathers, forelimbs modified into wings, scaly legs, a beak, and no teeth, and bearing young in a hard-shelled egg.
But then if you look down farther it also notes a bird as an airplane, a peculiar person, something you eat, an obscene gesture or ridicule. And then come the numerous idioms correlated with the word, such as, killing two birds with one stone, or the birds and the bees.
This one five letter words, with numerous meanings, and yet literature,movies, and songs (i.e. Free Bird) have their own portrayals.
In Forest Gump, Jenny prayed to be like a bird so she could fly far, far away.The movie began with a simple feather fluttering through the air as young Forest got on the bus, later as Jenny made her prayer, black birds flew out of that corn field and later her father passed. As the movie progressed, she attempted to jump of a balcony, had this of happened she would have been that bird, she would have flown up, and quickly come back down. Throughout the movie she fluttered in and out of Forest's life, much like a hummingbird as they come and go with the season, always finding you when the weather is sweet and days are warm, singing you beautiful songs. After she passed away you see the birds flying into the sky behind the old oak tree. And finally, the same fluttering feather lands at Forest feet as their son steps on the bus.
Was Jenny a bird her whole life? Was that feather in the beginning always Jenny? Was her childhood prayer her simple plea to God to make her bigger than this world and give her wings that she was never able to spread. It was the 70's and the drugs and alcohol could essentially make you feel like you are flying. Was that the entire essence of the movie though. Was Forrest merely flying through his life creating his own recollections of stories. Was he writing his own history book since Jenny had already flown away and was not there and able to write. Symbolically, had Jenny already flown when sitting in that field and her story went unwritten. In this setting a bird was a beautiful holy object there in a feeble attempt to save one from themselves.
One cannot write about a bird though and fail to mention the movie "The Birds." Alfred Hitchcock created his thriller with a predisposed meaning in my opinion. He took a factual story of a mass bird death in California and created a story of numerous bird attacks on this one girl. A girl who went to a small island an the birds, from the minute she stepped on the ferry, wanted her gone. The movie leads you to wonder were the birds in fear the Melanie was the next apocalypse. Did the birds smell Revelations in the air, and attack Melanie in attempt for her to leave town? Also, the were never beautiful or valiant or heroic, they were crows. Black birds. Pesty little creatures that my grandmother used to stand on her doorstep, beating her cane on the porch, trying to get the out of her yard. We never look at a crow in the same manner as we look at a dove or an eagle. They are dirty, dark objects. Even in Peter Pan, James Barrie depicted Peter crowing after killing Pirates, the crow that caused the pirates to fear, and the Lost Boys to cheer. Nothing could correlate with a crow.
But then, in moments of bleak sadness, we find the beauty of two doves. They are rare in themselves, but if seen together is symbolically refereed to as an everlasting love. They will never falter. Newlyweds will set them free at their wedding to show they unwavering commitment to one another.
There are also to cardinals, most ofter referred to as love birds when seen together. Old wive's tale's say that when you see two cardinals together to make a wish on them and you will be with you one true love the rest of your life.
And finally, the Eagle. A strong majestic symbol of hope and faith and power. For Christians they symbolize redemption and salvation. For governments, it is a symbol of protection, power and heraldry, depending on what ever direction the tips of the wings are pointing. By no means was the US the first society to use this a symbol of power and strength. There was Nazi Germany and the Third Reich and Napoleon and the Romans. We were by no means creative in placing this majestic bird in conjunction with the word e pluribus unum. Out of many, one.
In terms of the foundation of this statement, and how it was derived to be the seal of the US government, it was meant to show the foundation to be created between the 13 colonies to develop one government, one people. People that have immigrated from so many lands, and created their own states, but are able to be one body, one protector, one symbol of power and the strength. No wonder our founding fathers paired the eagle with this statement.
But on the opposite side of this, the eagle as the the American symbolism of power, is a fake in itself. The land was stole from the Native Americans, and the the Native Americans, they believed God chose the Eagle as the Master of the Sky, a leader because it can fly higher and see better than all other birds. Their feathers are sacrad to Native Americans are a treasure. Some tribes have Eagle dancers in their outfit, and if a feather falls of their regalia it is to be watched over in order to properly cleanse the feather after the dance has ended.
And yet, we stole the land and we stole this symbol of faith and power.
And hell if you made it this far, the birds and the bee's ... power and love that will sting the crap out of you and peck you at the same time. Its all relative my dear.
