/lit/ - Literature

Hey /lit/

When I read (and especially when I was in highschool during English classes with such horrifyingly bad reads like The Scarlet Letter and other stereotypical books) literature, even if it's known for its symbolism, such as Lord of the Flies, I never really see these symbols. For me, when I read, I am absorbing a story and enjoying the enrichment of characters through the symbols presented to me. Never once am I conscious of facts like:

Wow, this is a major turning point in the book! He's changing his habits

or

That sun's everywhere in this book, maybe it means something.

I NEVER make those connections. Am I stupid? I don't understand, I score very well on the ACT (never taken SAT, got 34 on ACT), but interpretations of literature elude me.


On another symbolism note, how many of you think that authors write books and intentionally put symbols in them, or do you think that an author just writes and it happens incidentally and they only realize the symbolism after the fact?