Allusions and Analogies March FY23

Allusions and Analogies

Figurative Language Concepts

March FY23

Allusions

An allusion is a brief and indirect reference to a famous person, place, thing, or idea.

Allusions

Think of Allusions as inside jokes. You have to understand the reference to really understand what it might mean in a sentence.

Confused?

There are many types of Allusions, so you have to know how to figure out the reference.

"Well, I’m no Hercules, but I could open that jelly jar for you."

Example of an Allusion

Multiple Choice

CHECK FOR UNDERSTANDING!

What is the key word in the definition of ALLUSION?

• Figure of Speech

• Reference

• Allusion

• Key Words

Directions

Based on what you know about allusions - answer the following questions.

Multiple Choice

I’ve kept my money in the same bank and I’ve driven the same car. I’ve even lived in the same house. All these years. Call it my Achilles’ heel, I guess. I don’t like change.

• Great weakness

• Comfort object

• Thing that is most needed in life

• Strongest weapon

Multiple Choice

It didn’t take a Sherlock Holmes to figure out that something was definitely up.

• A person that is nosy

• A very strong individual

• A person with very sharp intellect

• A person who reads a lot

Multiple Choice

“Oh, I wouldn’t do that,” cautioned George. “You don’t know what kind of Pandora’s box you’re opening.”

• A situation so tricky you can’t get out of it

• A dream you can never achieve no matter how hard you try

• A strange place you’ve never been

• A tempting situation that only causes trouble

Multiple Choice

LeBron James is hoping to return the Los Angeles Lakers to the promised land of the NBA finals.

• A place you seek above all others

• The fear that you will break your word

• A place you have no choice but to enter

• The top of the world

Multiple Choice

After all these years, I was truly feeling the siren call of travel.

• A loud sound

• An urge you can’t resist

• An emergency situation

• A feeling of boredom

Analogy

An analogy is a comparison in which an idea or a thing is compared to another thing that is quite different from it. It aims at explaining that idea or thing by comparing it to something that is familiar.

Multiple Choice

That's as useful as rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.

• It’s not useful at all, because it’s completely hopeless

• It’s pretty useful, but also really complicated

• It’s a large task that requires a lot of determination and planning

• It’s very useful, because it’s an important and necessary task.

Multiple Choice

What are two other types of figurative language in the sentence "That's as useful as rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic."

• Verbal Irony and Allusion

• Allusion and Personification

• Allusion and Oxymoron

• Oxymoron and Verbal Irony

Multiple Choice

Finding a good friend is like finding a needle in a haystack...

• You need to go to the country to find a good friend.

• Your chances of finding a good friend are pretty slim.

• Good friends are secretly dangerous

• Good friends will always be there no matter what.

Multiple Choice

What is another type of figurative language in the analogy "Finding a good friend is like finding a needle in a haystack. Your chances of finding a good friend are pretty slim."

• Allusion

• Idiom

• Personification

• Pun

Multiple Choice

When you contemplate the future, you need to think of yourself as a caterpillar coming out of its cocoon.

• You need to hold tight to the things you love.

• You must make slight changes in your life in order to maintain peace and balance.

• You need to have greater awareness of the animal world.

• You need to make radical changes in order to keep developing in life.

Multiple Choice

FINAL THOUGHT

Which of the following is NOT a reason that an author will use an allusion or an analogy?

• To help the reader understand a concept without having to explain it in depth

• To make a comparison

• To help the reader visualize what they're describing

• To trick the reader into believing something that is not true