What is an Allusion?
An allusion is a
brief reference to a fictional or historical person, place, or event, or to
another literary work or passage. In
ordinary conversation, we might allude to a literary character or historical
figure by calling a miserly person a Scrooge or a treacherous person a Benedict
Arnold. In literature, writers often use
allusions as a type of shorthand language to add color and vigor to their works