Lesson 2: Allusions and Figures of Speech
Allusion: (n) a reference to a well-known piece of literature, art, song, event, or person in a work of literature.
Example: His Goliath frame seemed to dwarf the other football players.
“Goliath” is a reference to a character who was a giant. This allusion tells the readers that the boy in the sentence above is much larger than the other football players.
Directions: Underline the allusions in the following sentences, determine to what the writer is referring, and then determine a possible meaning for the allusion. The first one is done for you.
Example: The kindergarteners were frightened of the new principal who reminded them of Cruella DeVille.
Reference to: Cruella DeVille who was a very mean lady in the movie 101 Dalmatians
Possible Meaning: The principal is a mean lady
1. I hoped to sign the birthday card our team bought for Coach, but I couldn’t find a spot to sign my name because someone went all John Hancock on it and signed his name across the whole card.
Reference to: ______________________________________________________
Possible meaning: __________________________________________________
2. Although the earthquake did a great deal of damage, it was nothing like the disaster of 9/11.
Reference to: ______________________________________________________
Possible meaning: __________________________________________________
Answer all
1. Reference to: John Hancock, who famously signed his name very large on the United States Declaration of Independence.
Possible meaning: Someone signed their name in a big and bold manner, taking up a lot of space on the birthday card.
2. Reference to: The disaster of 9/11, referring to the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, in the United States.
Possible meaning: The earthquake caused significant damage, but it was not on the same scale as the catastrophic events of 9/11.