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Symbolism In Compass And Torch

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Compass and Torch
Parenting is a difficult task, especially for divorced parents. One gender will often be the dominant force, but rising of a proper child will often require both a feminine role model as well as a masculine role model. But what happens when one gender completely fails to put their mark on the child’s upbringing? This issue is presented in the short story “Compass and Torch” written by Elizabeth Baines, where a young boy becomes the victim of an absent father from a divorced couple.
The boy in “Compass and Torch” is a curious little 8 year old boy, who is in a great lack of a male role model. The boy´s parents got divorced one year ago, and since then the boy has been living by his mother and has only seen his father a couple …show more content…

The two main symbols are a torch and a compass, which are also included in the text´s title. Both the father and the son bring a torch on their camping trip. A torch is a symbol of guidance, and so both the father and the son try to guide their way to find and relate to one another. Sadly they have both forgotten their compasses. A compass is a symbol of finding the right path, and since they have both forgotten it, they are unable to guide through the wilderness and find one another with their torches. The reason why the boy forgot his compass is very interesting, “No hope of him relating to his son on any personal, day-to-day level! No hope of him trying to RELATE to him. The boy might have remembered it the compass, as they were leaving. But he couldn´t wait to get going, for it all to be over.” (Page 3 line 99-102). It´s clear that the boy is so stressed by his mom and dad arguing, that he just wishes his dad out of his life so that his mom will stop thrash talking his dad, and therefore he forgot his compass. The father probably just forgot his compass since he hasn´t been able to relate to his son following the divorce. Apart from those symbols Elizabeth Baines also uses female horses out in the wilderness with the father and the son. The horses symbolize feminism, and are strongly rejected by the father, but in the end they finally get their grip on the boy, “For years to come, though, in his dreams the boy will see their wild fringed eyes and feel the deep thudding of their hooves.” (Page 5 line 169-170) Since the father has given up on his son the boy will merely be raised by his feminine mother in the following

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