Allusion
Allusion is used quite often in literature for its ability to capture the reader’s memory on the material they have read in the past. This term works by causing the reader to think back in a story, or a certain situation and remember a key point. Allusions are centered on whether or not you originally grabbed hold of an idea or felt any emotion from something one has read. When a reader’s memory has then been triggered by something the author has written previously, let’s say for example in a previous chapter or a previous book, one may apply the significance of the current situation or key point to what it is being compared to. One example cited in Harmon is a reference to the movie King Kong: “The beauty killed the beast.” Allusions can play as a summarization of an idea, which is why this statement on the movie King Kong is considered an allusion.
Works Cited
- Frye, Northrop, et al. The Harper Handbook to Literature. 2nd ed. New York: Addison Wesley Longman, Inc. 1997.
- Harmon, William and C. Hugh Holman. A Handbook to Literature. 7th ed. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall 1996.