How to Use Symbol and Allegory in Poems

When you write and perform poems what is important is that somehow you transport the viewer or listener through a window into a new reality. This can be done with symbols and allegory. Symbols are representative and allegory is a tale or little story that acts like a engine and a caboose so everyone is pulled and pushed out of their normal box. This poem sort of equates an ice cream vendor with ladies of the night. Both of them are like Chinese Food, filling you up for a short while, but pretty soon you want more. Your poetry should be like this too. When you get a good “bravo” at the end of your presentation and the crowd begs for one more, one more, one more! Then you’re on to something.
Symbol and allegory play on each other, but don’t lean too much on either. Sometimes you may want raw sounds without much symbolism and sometimes you may want the story to lead. At any rate, poems are windows for your audience and windows back in time for you. I wrote this poem a long time ago when ice cream and sex tasted very sweet. Ah, come to think of it, they still do.

Peddler's Choice


I scream ice cream
Down the hungry streets
Where dirt below, filth above
Is more want than love.

Ice cream? Ice cream?
It's fresh and pure from me;
Good and cheap, not free.
Tutti-fruity, chocolate, cherry?

Ice cream? Ice cream?
Calling at my buyers
Brings me no lovers.
Rocky road, vanilla, berry?

I scream, I scream
Cry and pound my chaste
But never melt the ice
That makes love last.

I scream ice screams
That pierce the day
And bring the bitter in
. . . take my sweets away.