The task:
Allusions are one of the most important, and common, literary devices available to authors. In short, allusions are when an author references a previously written work in order to make a point.
In this assignment you will be picking something we’ve read as a class between Weeks 2 and 9 and exploring the role of allusion in it.
The steps:
- Please read the encyclopedia entry in D2L and watch the video in D2L so that you understand fully what allusion is. Please watch the introductory video to this assignment in D2L.
- Pick a text and find an allusion: some ideas are provided below, or you can come up with your own topic.
- Research the allusion. What is it? Where does it come from?
- Think through how the early English author uses the allusion. What changes does he/she/they make to the original?
- Reflect on the point of the device. Why did the author use this allusion?