Symbolism In The Sun And Moon

“The Sun and Moon,” by Chrysanthemum Ti, follows the author’s transformation from someone who felt inadequate to someone who was able to unearth her personal success. Once overshadowed by her brother, the author is able to portray the path she traveled on in order to come upon this life-changing realization. Throughout the poem, Ti discovers that not only does she have her own success, but also that she can inspire others to find their success. In “The Sun and Moon,” the author uses symbolism and metaphors to suggest that a person’s success is not diminished by the success of others. Ti first uses symbolism of the Sun and the Moon to show how successful, accomplished people often overshadow others. The author starts by describing the Sun as “pulling everything into its orbit, including the cold Moon” (Ti 4). Ti uses the Sun’s great gravitational pull to represent how the Sun is constantly drawing other planets and stars toward it, and ultimately how the Sun is superior to other planets and stars in space. The

After transforming from the depressed person she was in the beginning, the author expresses her current relationship with her brother and states, “You’re the piano to my violin” (Ti 17). Ti uses this comparison between a piano and a violin because they are two vastly different instruments that are typically played together. The author further uses this comparison between the instruments to show that many people, although they may seem like opposites, can actually complement each other really well. This also shows that they work more as a team, rather than there being one person who is superior. Ultimately, the use of this metaphor is what allows the author to portray that people can inspire success within each other, as a team, without diminishing one another’s personal