by Gina Lawton

Created on: February 01, 2009

Symbols work powerfully in the human psyche, connecting the internal world of feeling and ideas to the outer world of action and application. When you ask, "Can a symbol sway someone?" I don't believe it's the actual symbol doing the influencing. Rather, it is whatever meaning a person has attached to the said symbol that wields power in a person's life.

People often focus on "stock" symbols, that have somehow come to "mean" something in our cultural collective. And, while conformist and people who simply drift through life might be "inspired" or moved by these types of symbols, I think overall that kind of response is best relegated to the overly sentimental and those whose highest motivation is to simply "fit in." If I draw a cross, people will usually react one of two ways - admiration or disgust. If I display an American flag, people either feel a swell of American pride, or a wave of frustration and hatred of the country this symbol represents.

But I believe personal symbols carry much more power in a person's life. Each of us walk a unique path as we navigate throughout life. I am certain it's human nature to attribute power to symbols that represent various points along the path. An old photograph, a certain song, maybe a specific meal ... these things hold power over us, and pull us back to specific markers along our life journey.

In fact, I think that personal symbols help us sort through the various stages of our lives, and in some way, gives us validation. That's why many of us are collectors of things that seem silly - old yearbooks, papers we wrote during college, pressed flowers and old ball gloves. These symbols help us remember where we've come from - who we were in times long past. They tie us to the person we were, and builds bridges to the people we're becoming.

Do these symbols "sway" us? That depends on a person's definition of sway. If you mean "to influence," or "to cause to swerve, as from a purpose or course of action," or even "to dominate, direct," (www.dictionary.com), then probably not. I believe only a weak-willed person would allow themselves to be put under the "sway" of a symbol, personal or otherwise.

If you mean sway in terms of being "inclined in opinion, sympathy and tendency," then symbols definitely hold sway over most of us. Even the most unsentimental person attributes meaning and therefore feeling to certain markers throughout their life. These symbols are a part of our lives. And, I believe they influence our opinions, they stir our sympathies, and they cause in us certain tendencies we listen to as we make new, uncharted choices. This is the true power of symbols to sway us.

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