Symbolism

Symbol

noun | sym·bol | ˈsim-bəl

1. an action, object, event, etc., that expresses or represents a particular idea or quality (Merriam-Webster Dictionary)

Symbolism is probably one of the most widespread literary devices used in novels, TV shows, and movies. Something becomes a symbol when it takes on an extra meaning, or when it can be used to channel an idea or a character. For example, one of the most common symbolisms is the use of light to represent “good” and dark to represent “evil.” You can spot that one everywhere: The Lion King, Sleeping Beauty, and The Little Mermaid are just three examples of Disney movies that use this color symbolism.

 

The ‘bad guys’ are darker than the ‘good guys,’ whether it be through their hair color, outfit color, or skin tone. This isn’t a coincidence.

Interestingly enough, Steven Universe doesn’t seem use this light/dark symbolism as much – there are various ‘bad guys’ throughout the episodes, but the most obvious ones are Jasper and Peridot, who aren’t darker than the rest of the Gems.

                         

You could argue that there is no white vs. black, good vs. evil symbolism in Steven Universe because each Gem has a bright, distinctive color from the rest – the color of their namesake stone. However, the writers of Steven Universe could’ve easily named the bad guys after dark gems like onyx and obsidian, which are black, but they chose not to. This is probably for a number of reasons: they might want to branch out from the light/dark symbolism cliché because it is overused, or they might want to avoid this type of symbolism because it can be seen as feeding into racist beliefs (associating “white” with “good” and “dark” with “evil”… just think about that one).

Despite this fact, symbolism is indeed used in much more interesting and complex ways throughout Steven Universe. Keep your eyes peeled for future posts that delve into different symbols that appear in the show!