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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
Chapter 1: Ragged Dick Is Introduced to the Reader
Explanation and Analysis—Dick's Straw Box:
When describing Dick's makeshift bed, Alger implicitly alludes to the manger where, according to Christian tradition, Jesus Christ was born. In the novel's opening chapter, Alger writes:
His bedchamber had been a wooden box half full of straw, on which the young boot-black had reposed his weary limbs, and slept as soundly as if it had been a bed of down.
In the Bible, Christ is born in a manger when his parents, on a journey far from home, are unable to find an inn. The wooden box, and especially the straw, recall that Biblical story, creating both an allusion and a simile—Alger is implicitly suggesting that Dick's bed is "like" Christ's birthplace. Although the language isn't explicit, the comparison would have been obvious to Alger's predominantly Christian audience.
Comparing Dick to Christ immediately establishes him as the hero of the novel and emphasizes the innate good qualities he possesses even before starting his journey of self-improvement: Dick is humble, generous, and never lies or steals. While he's not "a model boy," his character distinguishes him from other boot-blacks from the start.
Through this initial comparison, Alger also suggests that Dick's journey to success under capitalism is a religiously sanctioned one. If Dick is a Christ-like figure and succeeds through hard work and good choices alone, then his path is an essentially Christian one that Alger's readers should imitate. The comparison sets up later connections between business success and religious devotion, such as Mr. Greyson's churchgoing habits. And in a society that ascribed tremendous significance to Christian values, invoking the story of Christ's birth would have lent credence to Alger's overall arguments.
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Explanation and Analysis—George Washington's Coat:
Until Dick gets a new suit from Frank, he wears a ragged, out-of-style coat. This coat is so old that he frequently says it used to belong to George Washington, making a humorous allusion to the first president of the United States. Talking to Mr. Greyson, Dick quips:
“This coat once belonged to General Washington [...] He wore it all through the Revolution, and it got torn some, ’cause he fit so hard. When he died he told his widder to give it to some smart young feller that hadn’t got none of his own; so she gave it to me."
An ongoing joke throughout the novel, this allusion emphasizes the gap between Dick, an impoverished orphan, and the American heroes who inspire him—as well as Dick's willingness to poke fun at that gap, demonstrating his good humor and humility. At the same time, the allusion implicitly connects Dick with the ideals of patriotic virtue that Washington represents in American lore: stories about Washington emphasize his honesty, which is one of Dick's distinguishing characteristics as well. Like Dick's natural good looks and the initial comparison between his straw bed and Christ's manger, this allusion emphasizes his essential goodness.
This allusion also bolsters Alger's wider claim that Dick's story is an essentially American one and that his success is a testament to the superiority of American society. Throughout the novel, Alger argues that American democracy is the best political system, especially compared to British monarchy. In chronicling Dick's upward trajectory, Alger is articulating his vision of America as a uniquely meritocratic and fair society and providing a blueprint for any hardworking young man to replicate Dick's success. By invoking George Washington, Alger communicates his novel's national scope.
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Chapter 16: The First Lesson
Explanation and Analysis—Horace Greeley:
Several times during the novel, Dick, who hawked newspapers on the street before embarking on his career as a boot-black, alludes to the real-life 19th-century newspaper editor Horace Greeley. Joking with Fosdick about his lack of education, Dick says,
“My friend Horace Greeley told me the other day that he’d get me to take his place now and then when he was off makin’ speeches if my edication hadn’t been neglected.”
Likewise, when Dick takes Frank to see the inexpensive, low-quality tailor that serves boot-blacks like him, he jokes that "me and Horace Greeley always go there for clothes." Alger's original audience would have immediately understood this as a joke; a prominent public figure such as Greeley would not have spent time with the working boys who sold his newspapers. The joke derives its humor from the implication that Greeley associates with boys like Dick and patronizes the same cheap shops they do.
Born in 1811, Horace Greeley was a famous editor and politician who grew up in a poor family but, after coming to New York City, founded the extremely popular newspaper The New York Tribune and even served as a congressman. He's remembered for urging Americans to "settle" the country's Western territories through his newspaper columns, and he coined the phrase, "Go west, young man, and grow up with the country."
In some ways, Greeley exemplifies the novel's themes of success through hard work, since he came from humble origins and became a prosperous and well-regarded businessman. At the same time, Greeley advocated for various progressive causes such as socialism and feminism, while Ragged Dick extols the benefits of capitalism and advances Alger's far more conservative ideals of "respectability." By suggesting, even in jest, that Dick and Greeley are peers, Alger might have been taking a dig at a real-life peer who advocated a radically different vision of American society.
Related Themes:
