Allusion-Formative Assessment

What is allusion?

• an indirect reference

• a word whose sound suggests its meaning

• the repetition of the same sound in words

• an exaggeration or overstatement

In the biblical story of David and Goliath, a young boy takes down a giant using only a slingshot. Alluding to this story when describing a battle most likely implies that

• one fighter is large and the other is not.

• the two fighters are equally matched.

• the bigger fighter will probably win.

• one fighter's name is David.

To spot an allusion, a reader must first use

• the internet

• a dictionary

• another book

• prior knowledge

Which line from Robert Frost's "Nothing Gold Can Stay" contains an allusion to the bible?

• "So dawn subsides to day."

• "Then leaf subsides to leaf."

• "So Eden sank to grief."

• "Nothing gold can stay."

True or False: Allusions are fully explained by the author of a text.

• True

• False

An artist may allude to

• mythology only.

• books and movies only.

• Shakespeare's works only.

• literature, history, and pop culture.

West Side Story is a musical about a young man and woman who fall in love despite being from warring gangs. Which of Shakespeare's plays does it allude to?

• Richard III, which tells the story of King Richard, who killed his brothers and nephews to seize the crown of England.

• King Lear, in which a king gives his land to two evil daughters while disowning his one loyal daughter

• All's Well that Ends Well, in which a young man who doesn't love her back

• Romeo and Juliet, in which two teens from enemy families get married and die for their love

Using allusion can improve your writing because it

• adds another layer of meaning to the text.

• helps convey urgency or excitement.

• adds to the diction of the text.

• helps keep the plot original.

What are the sources for the allusions in the following lines of Flocabulary's "Allusion" song?

Opened up Pandora's Box, now we Alice in the rabbit hole,

And allusions make you dig in the plot.

• the Bible

• mythology only

• literature and mythology

• pop culture, literature and the Bible

Napolean Bonaparte built a huge empire, but it fell apart after he lost the battle of Waterloo. Know that, what does the allusion to Waterloo in these lines of Flocabulary's "Allusion" song mean?

But if you met your Waterloo, don't be a Scrooge,

Just look it up and learn something brand new.

• If you lose a battle, then you lose the war.

• Don't feel defeated if you don't understand an allusion right away.

• Finding allusions is like fighting a war.

• Finding allusions is always easy, unlike battle.