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Symbols are objects, characters, figures, and colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts.

Tiffany’s

Tiffany’s is a high-end jewelry store where Holly describes feeling most at peace. When discussing her ideal home, she imagines with confidence that to live there would feel as though she were at the store. Objectively, Tiffany’s embodies the social world Holly has managed to gain entry to through cunning and perseverance. In Holly’s mind, however, it represents something more intimate  . Tiffany’s becomes a stand-in for Holly’s sense of safety and belonging, representing a home that she yearns for throughout the course of the novella. The materiality of idealizing a fancy store contrasts with the yearning emotion Holly connects with it.

The Bird Cage

Holly gives the narrator an antique bird cage as a gift, despite her strong dislike of cages. The narrator originally discovers the cage when he passes it in a storefront and fantasizes about owning it and keeping exotic birds. Holly is offended at the idea of keeping any animal caged, but she buys the cage for him under the stipulation that he never keep any living thing inside it. When he tries to return the cage to her after their falling out, she throws it away and he retrieves it from the trash pile. The bird cage calls attention to the effect of perception and the way each of them sees the cage, demonstrating the distance separating their understandings of the world. To Holly, the cage represents a direct threat to some creature’s freedom, which she associates with her own. This tie between the bird cage and Holly and the narrator’s relationship frames the narrator as another man who would be inclined to entrap Holly if given the chance.

The Cat

Holly’s cat remains nameless in this book, something that holds great meaning in how she represents her relationship with it. She describes herself and the cat as “independents” who happen to cohabitate and refuses to acknowledge any emotional connection between them. Her refusal to acknowledge her attachment to the cat is entwined with her reluctance to allow any other creature to impose on her autonomy and freedom, as well as her inability to feel at home anywhere she is. In many ways, the cat reflects Holly herself, whose transient nature and lack of a sense of belonging echoes that of a stray animal with no fixed home. Holly’s scenes with the cat are used to highlight her fears of depending on others and indicate a deeper desire for stability and companionship than she is willing to admit openly. In these moments, the cat symbolizes the potential for a stable home and psychological safety.

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