Mini-Lesson on ALLUSION

Allusion Definition

• Allusion is a brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance. 
• 
  
• It does not describe in detail the person or thing to which it refers. It is just a passing comment and the writer expects the reader to possess enough knowledge to spot the allusion and grasp its importance in a text.
• 
  
• For instance, you make a literary allusion the moment you say, “I do not approve of this quixotic idea,” Quixotic means stupid and impractical derived from Cervantes’s “Don Quixote”, a story of a foolish knight and his misadventures. (Literarydevices.net)