Summary Of Powder By Tobias Wolff

Literary Analysis of the Symbols in “Powder” Symbolism is a very popular literary device, and it is used by many poets and authors. “All Summer in a Day,” “The Fall of the House of Usher,” and “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” are great examples of short stories with symbolism. However, “Powder” by Tobias Wolff shows great symbolism through different objects and people. The state trooper and sawhorse, the car the dad drives, and the drive down the mountain are the three best examples of symbolism in this story. The state trooper and sawhorse both represent law and rules. However, the father does not like to follow these laws and rules. The state trooper was the one that told the dad that he and his son were not aloud to use the highway because of the road conditions. The state trooper represented authority and that is another reason the dad did not think he had to listen to the officer. The sawhorse is just another obstacle the father has to overcome, which is not hard for him because he does not think the rules apply to him. “The road is closed,” even these words by the state trooper had no effect on the way the dad thought about rules.

He knows very well that he is going to be driving down a mountain in the snow, because the road closed rule does not matter to him, and he has the nerve to drive a small convertible. The price of the car is mentioned in the story and tells the readers that it is way too expensive, and the dad is unable to afford the car. This car also represents the way the father is. He is immature and acts like a child. The father has not one responsible bone in his body and the choice of car to drive down the mountain proves it. “Easy. You always think ahead,” this is a trait that the father needs to learn how to do. If he were thinking ahead he would have never have been worried about getting his son back to his mother’s house in