allusion

Allusion is a concept linked to the verb allude (to name, point out or refer to a person or something). An allusion (which comes from the Latin allusĭo), therefore, it is a reference towards an object, a symbolic question or an individual.

For example: "I want to clarify one thing: when I said that there were incapable people in this company, it was not an allusion for you", "Your words in reference to my parents hurt me", "The coach alluded to conflict and stated that he would not tolerate another situation of violence within the team ".

The allusions, therefore, are reviews or indications about something. If a journalist analyzes the electoral process of a country, it could be said that he refers to the elections in his program. Similarly, when a young woman talks to her friend about her boyfriend, she is referring to the boy in question.

It is evident that it is possible to make an allusion to a human being, an object, a situation or something of any other kind. Everything that can be expressed through language, therefore, it is susceptible to being alluded to.

In the field of rhetoric, an allusion is a Literary figure whose content points to a concept indirectly. The allusion, in this way, suggests or hints at a meaning through the mention of certain traits or properties.

The expression "Man's Best Friend" is a rhetorical allusion to name a dog, for example. Other allusions of this kind are "The big cheese" (by Moon) or "The wooden suit" (for coffin).

It is important to note that the rhetorical allusion, which is also known as literary allusionIt is rather indirect, since it requires a certain knowledge on the part of the receiver for its correct decoding. In general, the reference made by the issuer is of an artistic or mythological nature, that is, it refers to characters or elements typical of literature, ancient mythology, etc., that are not part of the culture general.

On the other hand is the direct allusion, which is supported by phrases that the general public can understand. This does not mean that they are literal sentences, where the metaphor does not exist to any degree; on the contrary, as can be seen in "man's best friend", it is necessary to know the meaning of this phrase to understand the allusion.

The direct allusion, therefore, we can find it in everyday speech, in the media and in any ambit of relative informality. Of course, they can also be used in formal and academic settings, because they are part of the culture and can be very useful to express certain ideas or generate double meanings.

Next we will analyze some of the most common direct allusions in the day to day. Perhaps the comparison of the human being with different animals is one of the most used resources to describe unusual attitudes in a person. For example, when talking about very unruly children, it is normal to say that "They look like wild beasts" to refer to your behaviour destructive or difficult to control.

It can also be said that someone "it's a tiger" in your work, for example, if you have a sweeping way of working, if you get exemplary results with a determination of iron. When someone is described "Like a parrot" allusion is made to his great verbiage, to the fact that "Speak up to your elbows". It is also said that a person "It's a harpy" if he has a twisted behavior, if he is false, lack of principle and only pursue his own interests without caring about the consequences.