Light and Fire
Images of light and fire appear all over the novel, and they often go together. Makes sense, right? Strike a match, and, look at that—you get both fire and light. The result is a symbol with a du...
Skulls and Buzzards
We know what you're thinking. When skulls and buzzards appear on a list of symbols—together no less—it can't be good news for the novel's characters. You're right; it isn't. And it isn't exactl...
Simplification
The Simplification almost sounds pleasant, in an infomercial kind of way: "Life too complicated? Feel like your day-to-day is as tangled as the wires behind your TV? Then grab some Simplification j...
The Road
It's pretty much a rule that whenever you have a road in a work of art, it's a symbol. Ever read Cormac McCarthy's The Road? Duh. And let's not forget On the Road by Kerouac and "The Road Not...
Rocks and Stones
Rocks and stones are everywhere in A Canticle for Leibowitz. We imagine the complete and total destruction of the world would leave you with a surplus of rubble. But the novel doesn't contain refer...
The Memorabilia
Memorabilia is defined as something "remarkable and worthy of remembrance" (source). The Memorabilia collection of the Leibowitz Abbey doesn't stray too far from this definition either. It's a coll...