Invisible Cities Setting & Symbolism

Invisible Cities Objects/Places

Kublai Khan's Garden

The conversations between Khan and Marco Polo take place in Khan's palace garden. Polo uses the garden to provide a point of origin for the stories he tells. He wants Khan to visualize the cities from the perspective of sitting in a beautiful garden on a nice evening.

The City of Venice

Marco Polo's home city is the city of Venice. Each story he tells about the cities contains his impressions of Venice. All of the cities are filtered through the city of Venice and its inhabitants.

The Stone Bridge

At the end of Chapter 5, Polo describes a bridge made of stone. The stone form an arch, which holds the bridge in place. Khan questions the importance of the stones if it is the arch that holds the bridge in place. Polo has to explain to him that the arch could not exist without the stones.

Khan's Chessboard

Khan's understanding of strategies translates directly into the game of...
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