Previous
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
Allusions
Explanation and Analysis—Sympathy:
The title of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is an allusion to the final stanza of Paul Laurence Dunbar's poem "Sympathy." In the poem, Dunbar places himself in the position of a caged bird, beginning the first stanza with the statement that "I know what the caged bird feels, alas!" In the second stanza, Dunbar relates his experiences with oppression as a Black man living in America to that of the caged bird, sympathizing with the bird's need to resist. He begins this second stanza with the lines, "I know why the caged bird beats his wing / Till its blood is red on the cruel bars," indirectly comparing his own freedom struggle—and the Black community's freedom struggle—to the bird's natural impulse to resist imprisonment.
Related Themes:
Chapter 5
Explanation and Analysis—Commandments:
In the following passage from Chapter 5, Angelou makes an allusion to the Bible during a discussion about her grandmother, a devoutly religious woman:
Unlock with LitCharts A+"Thou shall not be dirty" and "Thou shall not be impudent" were the two commandments of Grandmother Henderson upon which hung our total salvation.
Related Themes:
Chapter 10
Explanation and Analysis—Virgin Mary:
In the following passage from Chapter 10, Angelou attempts to unpack her relationship with her biological mother, whom she exalts but does not understand. To illustrate the nature of this relationship, Angelou defaults to religious language, both alluding to the Bible and comparing her mother to the Virgin Mary:
Unlock with LitCharts A+I could never put my finger on her realness. . . . I thought [my mother] looked just like the Virgin Mary. But what mother and daughter understand each other, or even have the sympathy for each other's lack of understanding? Mother had prepared a place for us, and we went to it gratefully.
Related Themes:
Chapter 12
Explanation and Analysis—Camel and Needle:
In Chapter 12, Angelou describes her harrowing experience with penetrative sexual assault as an eight-year-old. In the following excerpt from that chapter, Angelou utilizes biblical allusion and metaphor to characterize her experience:
Unlock with LitCharts A+Then there was the pain. A breaking and entering when even the senses are torn apart. The act of rape on an eight-year-old body is a matter of the needle giving because the camel can't. The child gives, because the body can, and the mind of the violator cannot.
Related Themes:
