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Literary Devices
Definition of Allusion
In literature, an allusion is an unexplained reference to someone or something outside of the text. Writers commonly allude to other literary works, famous individuals, historical events, or philosophical ideas... read full definition
In literature, an allusion is an unexplained reference to someone or something outside of the text. Writers commonly allude to other literary works, famous individuals... read full definition
In literature, an allusion is an unexplained reference to someone or something outside of the text. Writers commonly allude to... read full definition
Key Examples in Homegoing
Part 1: Kojo
Explanation and Analysis—Fugitive Slave Act:
Kojo’s narrative briefly alludes to the Fugitive Slave Act as Agnes gets married. News of the bill’s passage weaves itself into the fabric of his daily life:
The couple married the next month, on the morning the Fugitive Slave Act passed. Anna sewed Agnes's dress in the night by candlelight. In the mornings, Jo would find her, bleary-eyed, blinking herself awake as she got ready to go to the Mathison house. Baby H was so big in her belly that she could no longer walk without waddling, her feet so swollen that when she shoved them into her work slippers they folded back out and over, like bread that had too much yeast and could not be contained by its pan.
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Part 2: Yaw
Explanation and Analysis—Kwame Nkrumah:
Yaw’s time in Ghana coincides with a period of mounting political tensions. Amid the brewing movements for independence, the novel alludes to Kwame Nkrumah as he founds the Convention People’s Party:
Unlock with LitCharts A+The semester passed. In June, Kwame Nkrumah, a political leader from Nkroful, started the Convention People's Party and Edward joined soon thereafter. "Independence is coming, my brother," he was fond of saying to Yaw on the nights when Yaw still joined him and his wife for dinner. This happened less and less.
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Part 2: Sonny
Explanation and Analysis—The Souls of Black Folk:
Sonny’s chapter features an allusion to one of W. E. B. Du Bois’s cornerstone works. After yet another arrest for his work with the NAACP, he kills time in jail by flipping through The Souls of Black Folk:
Unlock with LitCharts A+Jail gave Sonny time to read. He used the hours before his mother bailed him out to thumb through The Souls of Black Folk. He'd read it four times already, and he still wasn't tired of it. It reaffirmed for him the purpose of his being there, on an iron bench, in an iron cell. Every time he felt the futility of his work for the NAACP, he'd finger the well-worn pages of that book, and it would strengthen his resolve.
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Part 2: Marjorie
Explanation and Analysis—Great Gatsby:
In a literary allusion, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel graces the Huntsville high school floors as Marjorie’s peers prepare for prom:
Unlock with LitCharts A+Prom was themed The Great Gatsby. In the decorating days that preceded it, the school's floors were littered with sparkles and glitter. The night of prom, Marjorie was sandwiched between her parents on their couch, watching a movie on the television. She could hear her parents whispering about her when she got up to make popcorn.
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