Guide to Literary Terms | Allusion
Allusion - a reference, usually brief, often casual, occasionally indirect, to a person , event, or condition thought to be familiar (but sometimes actually obscure or unknown) to the reader. This holds true especially for the characters and events of mythology, legends, and history. Association is an essential part of allusion. The purpose of allusion is to bring a world of experience outside the limitations of a statement to the reader.
The term comes from Latin alludere, which means “to play with,” “jest,” or “refer to.”
John Milton uses allusion in Paradise Lost:
...; and what resounds
In fable or romance of Uther’s son
Begirt with British and Armoric knights;
And all who since, baptized or infidel
Jousted in Aspramont or Montalban,
Damask, or Marocco, or Trebisond,
Or whom Biserta sent from Afric shore
When Charlemain with all his peerage fell
By Fontarabbia.
Book 1 : lines 479 – 587
In The Merchant of Venice, when Shylock seeks to compliment Portia for her agreeing that Bassanio must keep his bargain, Shakespeare has Shylock use the biblical allusion:
A Daniel come to judgment! Yea, a Daniel.
Act IV, scene i : line 221
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