What Does The Lather Symbolize

Among all the aspects that make up a story, there is always a symbolic significance to be found within; whether it being an object or piece of imagery. In the short story “Lather and Nothing Else”, written by Hernando Téllez, symbolism plays a huge role in conveying deeper themes. The symbolism in this short story can be observed in many ways which can easily be summed up into three points: the lather symbolises the role reversal of the barber and Torres, the blade symbolises how the barber can pick and choose his own fate by either killing or not killing Torres, and finally, the imagery of blood symbolises the barber’s inner mindset. To put into short terms; the entirety of “Lather and Nothing Else” has a deeper meaning through symbolism.

The lather represents the barber’s professionalism, and his commitment to his craft. He takes pride in his work as a barber, and the lather symbolises the care and attention he puts into the appearance of his customers. A passage from the story that conveys that the barber takes pride in his work follows: “I started to work carefully on the shaving soap. I scraped some slices from the cake, dropped them into the mug, then added a little lukewarm water, and stirred with the brush. The lather soon began to rise.” This quote helps readers to visually understand how devoted the barber is to his craft, even with someone such as Torres as his customer. However, the lather also represents the “mask” which the barber wears. Overall, the barber is a neutral figure in the conflict between Torres and the rebels. The lather serves as a symbol of his neutrality. It can be observed in the story through this following passage that the barber has thoughts of killing Torres, “I could cut his throat, so, swish, swish! He would not even have time to moan, and with his eyes shut he would not even see the shine of the razor or the gleam in my eye.” Another way the barber’s neutrality can be seen in the story through the lather, is the colour itself. The lather is white, which symbolises purity and innocence, further emphasising the barber’s in the political

The blood symbolises the barber’s inner mind, and dark thoughts. In the story, the reader gets a view of inside the barber’s mind and his thoughts. It can be seen that the barber knows he has a chance to kill Torres, and if he follows through it will end in blood. This passage provides a prime example of what the barber feels about his dark thoughts, “But I don’t want to be a murderer. No, sir. You came in to be shaved. And I do my work honorably. I don’t want to stain my hands with blood.” To add along to this, if the barber had followed through with his dark thoughts of killing Torres, he had a plan on what to do afterwards. This further enforces the point that the imagery of blood symbolises the barber’s inner mind and dark thoughts. Even living as a simple barber, he has dark and graphic thoughts, which can be seen through a passage in the story: “From his throat a stream of blood would flow on the sheet, over the chair, down on my hands, onto the floor. I would have to close the door.” Overall, the whole imagery of blood helps to show the symbolism behind it, which is the barber’s true