The Use of Mythological Allusions in Margaret Atwood's Poetry

He maintains his focus on Greek myths not only because of the sheer number of myths around the world, making it impossible to interpret and clarify them all, but also because European men, who would have been familiar with the myths from Greece, write most of the classics we analyze. He explains that these myths are not only a part of them but also “so much a part of the fabric of our consciousness, of our unconscious really, that we scarcely notice” (Foster, 51). Which suggests that, we can recognize Greek myths even if we do not realize it. With this simple fact presented to us, we no longer wonder why allusions to Greek myths have been used since they emerged and are still employed today. Myths are often exercised as “overt subject matter for poems and paintings and operas and novels” but more often “writers have…borrowed from and emulated” these myths (Foster, 52, 53). Instead of explaining every detail about every character, place or moment authors rely on other stories, such as myths, to expand and develop their tale. The writer will subtly hint at myths and hope you recognize their allusions to these old legends. Since we established that, we know these myths, whether consciously or not, we can take these allusions and decipher any hidden meanings the author has for us, giving each story a new level.

Allusion- “that Abraham Lincoln had been assassinated before the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation” (22). This allusion allows readers to connect with the character more by understanding a little a bit of the racial situation she is in.

Although both poems discuss Helen of Troy, both speakers’ withhold different perspectives within the first stanza. In “To Helen” the speaker sets Helen on a pedestal as he uses the apostrophe “Helen, thy beauty is to me” (Poe, line 1). He emphasizes that he speaks to her as the title “To Helen” sets the praiseful tone within the poem. However, the unimpressed speaker of “Helen” displays the loss of connection to this famous woman as

In The Kite Runner, and in numerous other stories as well, there are examples of both allusion and

Allusions are meant to put things in a different perspective. Like in harrison bergeron, Its 2081 and everyone is equal, it’s trying to say, we

women and the people who have been misjudged and looked down upon.Minerva died a heroine

As a result of this mature stance, her speech was respected by many for addressing the important issue of women in society, and doing it in an entertaining manner. Atwood was influential during the feminist movement which began in the 60s and her influence is shown through her literary works. Her speech raises the issue of the role that women should take in society looking at it through the portrayal of women in literature. Atwood’s historical and literary references allow her to validate her points and to explore the role of women and how they are portrayed in literature (good and bad). The audience can easily identify with them – Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Lady Macbeth. Atwood supports her ideas with language techniques and features making her speech worthy of critical study.

Translators across the world will face problems through out their translation. One of these problems is allusion. An author referring to a person, or a place, or an event, in his\her book won't make a problem for readers from the same culture to figure it out, but it may cause a cross culture for readers from other culture.

Allusions are widely used in many famous pieces of literature. To Kill a Mockingbird, Old Man in the Sea, and Frankenstein are just some of the many books in which allusions play a substantial role. By analyzing allusions and symbolism in these books, the reader can connect fiction with real life. Although numerous people are oblivious to allusions, they play a large role in establishing the bigger picture of a story. Allusions within literature give the reader insight to what the author is really trying to get across because every story has a deeper meaning.

Recently Mrs. Baldwin’s Pre-AP classes worked on a project in which they choose something to allude to, and had to explain where it came from, it’s past, create an original example, and create a model based on it. The students did this in order to show their knowledge based on allusion. They could choose from things like Greek mythology, the Bible, Disney, Shakespeare, etc. They were to research about what they choose, and create a project on any kind of software, like Keynote or Prezi, and make a drawing or 3D model based on the allusion. 
Eden Smoot, a student in Mrs. Baldwin’s fourth period, stated “The Allusions project for Mrs. Baldwin was easy and interesting. It was cool to learn the story/ meaning behind different allusions. Kathleen

A key to understanding his writing, says author Tom Robbins, is a knowledge of Greek myth. A particular influence on him is the life and work of Joseph Campbell, author of several books on mythology (Hoyser and Stookey 9). Campbell, in turn, owes influence to the insights of analytic psychologist Carl Jung. Jung recognized the patterns within myths --- throughout the world and across all cultures -- of characters, situations, and events, and identified these recurring images as archetypes (Harris and Platzner 40). Campbell

Atwood uses simple, but effective imagery to engage the senses of the reader, for example: ‘[…] that is a fish, blue and flat’ (l. 4). These images grow more elaborate and it becomes clear that she uses metaphors and simile to convey more intricate ideas. As the speaker confesses that there is more to the world than they let on, the use of enjambment, repetition and punctuation directs the focus on certain words and gives the poem certain acuteness and urgency as the pace increases: ‘Once you have learned these words | you will learn that there are more |words than you can ever learn.’ (l. 21-23).

As proclaimed by Shmoop editors, “When authors refer to other great works, people, and events. It’s usually not accidental” (Shmoop Editorial Team). In the story Brave New World by Aldous Huxley there is a profuse amount of allusions throughout the entirety of the novel. There are three main forms of allusion that is superior to the rest. Huxley uses literary, Native American, and religious allusions throughout the whole of the novel. These three forms of allusion help tie the story together by bringing into view how different the two societies are within the story.

Often times great novels and plays allude to religion, to mythology, or to other literary works for dramatic purposes. Shakespearean plays are perfect examples. Allusions help the reader or spectator better understand, through visualization, a character or an event in a novel. In some cases, the characters, the events, or a series of events are structured according to the people and the action in other stories, whether the stories be religious, mythological, classical, or historical. The character or the event, therefore, becomes a prototype of the character or event alluded to. A prototypical character in a novel is usually referred

Edmund Spenser’s epic poem The Faerie Queene is well known as an allegorical work, and the poem is typically read in relation to the political and religious context of the time. The term allegory tends to be loosely defined, rendering a whole work an extended metaphor, or even implying “any writing in verse or prose that has a double meaning”(Cuddon 20). In true Spenserian style, with everything having double meanings, both uses of the term allegory are applicable to his writing.