use of symbols. I never am until I see them. They come of
             themselves because they belong to me, and have meaning to me, but they come of
             themselves. I have no way of explaining them...and I suppose you don't invent
             symbolism. (qtd. in Unrue 17)
             On a separate occasion Porter is quoted as saying, "I never consciously took or adopted a symbol in my life" (qtd. in Unrue 17).
             While Miranda and Paul are hunting in the fields they decide to stop and explore the empty graves that once were the family burial ground. In one of the graves, Miranda finds a screwhead for a coffin, a small silver dove "with spread wings and a neat fan-shaped tail" (70), which she rapidly exchanges to Paul for a golden ring. Many different views exist concerning the symbolic status of the silver dove. M.A. Grubbs describes the dove as a symbol of innocence, love, and peace; and proposes that the "dove's emergence from the grave suggests innocence born from experience" (3320). According to Joan Givner, the dove, shaped like the dove of Venus, is a symbol of earthly love (237). Another view is that the silver dove symbolizes "the past, the mythic, and the sacred" (Cheatham, "Death" 613). The use of the dove as a symbolic figure can be perceived in various ways. Initially, the incorporation of the symbol could be coincidental. "Second, the symbol might be a pretentious device to add a superficial sense of weight and depth to the story without any particular religious significance." Perhaps the dove suggests a "Christian meaning which the story as a whole affirms," or the inclusion of the dove could be considered a "parody of the resurrection" (Cheatham, "Criticism" 113). Paul longs
             to have the dove, which typifies "a killing for Paul, the archetypal male as hunter" (Unrue 59). The imperfec...