Allusion In 'The Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass'

The Power of Allusion An allusion is an implied or indirect reference, especially in literature. They allow insight on a character or the story. For example, Thomas C. Foster, in his book How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading between the Lines tells us of the common themes within literature, for example “The Fall”, “The Fallen World”, or “ Judgement day”. Allusions may help one predict or foreshadow a story’s future or add subtle or promate details that can only be picked up on by an informed reader. In the audiobiography/ slave narrative The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass By Frederick Douglass, he explains his thoughts on escaping the slave-ridden south with an allusion. “...I felt like one who had escaped a den of hungry lions.” This quote is seemingly an indirect reference to the book of Daniel in the Bible. In this book, Daniel is thrown into a lion’s den after disobeying a law of no prayer. At daybreak the next morning the king finds Daniel still alive and orders all the men who plotted against Daniel to be thrown into the same pit. All the men were overpowered before they even hit the ground. Using this allusion allow insight into Douglass’s idea of the
where she walks the crowd will part like the sea for Israel”. This Allusion speaks about how Moses spread the Red Sea. Abigail was a character who gain enormous power and could essentially put people to death. This reference to Moses emphasizes the immense fear people had for her. There is another popular biblical allusion in The Crucible that involves a preacher named Hale. He believed the witchcraft trials were not true, but he had to satisfy the people. Just like in the Bible, Pontius Pilate did not believe that Jesus was guilty of blasphemy,but he had to satisfy his