Previous
Alliteration
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
Explanation and Analysis—Sisters:
As he introduces the reader to the various members of his family, Dr. Primrose contrasts the appearances and characters of his two daughters, developing them as foils for one another. He describes his eldest daughter Olivia with an allusion to Greek mythology and proceeds to describe his younger daughter Sophia in contrasting, but still glowing, terms:
Olivia, now about eighteen, had that luxuriancy of beauty with which painters generally draw Hebe; open, sprightly, and commanding. Sophia’s features were not so striking at first; but often did more certain execution; for they were soft, modest, and alluring. The one vanquished by a single blow, the other by efforts successfully repeated.
While both of the girls are beautiful, Dr. Primrose describes them as beautiful in very different ways. The allusion to Hebe, the daughter of the Greek gods Zeus and Hera, underlines Olivia's striking looks. In fact, Hebe's name comes from the Greek word hēbē, which means youthful beauty. Sophia's looks are not striking, but she is alluring precisely on account of her much softer appearance. This difference in physical appearance has direct bearing on the effect they have on people they interact with. The immediately attractive Olivia receives attention right away, whereas the subtler Sophia grows on people with time. Dr. Primrose's description serves to emphasize that, although their looks are different, his daughters are both known to be beautiful.
Claiming that a woman's appearance determines her personality, Dr. Primrose goes on to contrast his daughter's ways of thinking and being:
Olivia wished for many lovers, Sophia to secure one. Olivia was often affected from too great a desire to please. Sophia even represt excellence from her fears to offend. The one entertained me with her vivacity when I was gay, the other with her sense when I was serious.
Rather than creating conflict between the two sisters, or leading the father to express a preference for one over the other, their differences bring balance to the family. Cherishing their differences, Dr. Primrose loves his daughters equally. Throughout the novel, Goldsmith develops the characterization of the two girls through a constant juxtaposition between them. If Olivia reacts in one way, the reader can trust that Sophia will react in a quieter and more thoughtful way. They also attract different kinds of men and behave differently in stages of courtship. Clear foils for one another, they nevertheless get along well throughout most of the novel.
Related Themes:
Chapter 16
Explanation and Analysis—Crusoe's Boat:
When the painting that the Primrose family has commissioned is completed in the middle of the 16th chapter, it turns out that it is too big to fit on any of the walls of their house. This instance of situational irony is captured by an allusion to the adventure novel Robinson Crusoe:
One compared it to Robinson Crusoe’s long-boat, too large to be removed; another thought it more resembled a reel in a bottle; some wondered how it could be got out, but still more were amazed how it ever got in.
In Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, the eponymous main character Robinson Crusoe is stranded on a desert island. Crusoe devotes several months to building a large and intricate boat to escape on. However, having built it far from the shore, he never considers how to get it into the water until he has completed it. At this point, he realizes that his carefully constructed boat is far too heavy for him to lift. He attempts to design other methods to get the boat to the beach, but ultimately has to give up. In the end, he is grateful for the experience because it humbles him. The failed boat teaches him that one must plan ahead before starting a large, time-consuming project.
By comparing the painting to Crusoe's boat, people suggest that the Primroses have behaved proudly and ignorantly. They desire a portrait in order to prove that they are on the level of—or ideally above—their neighbors the Flamboroughs, without ever stopping to consider whether they have room for such a portrait in their house. The incredible, rather comical result is that they can't even get the painting out of their home. Dr. Primrose reflects on how, instead of "gratifying [their] vanity, as [they] had hoped," the painting had the ironic effect of humiliating and humbling them.
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—Family Portrait:
Upon hearing, in the 16th chapter, that the Flamboroughs have had their portrait painted, the Primroses commission the same painter for a family portrait. Dr. Primrose recounts how each member of the family asks to be depicted, most of them requesting to be represented as mythical or historical figures. The passage, replete with allusions, provides rich visual imagery of the resulting painting:
My wife desired to be represented as Venus, and the painter was desired not to be too frugal of his diamonds in her stomacher and hair. Her two little ones were to be as Cupids by her side, while I, in my gown and band, was to present her with my books on the Whistonian controversy. Olivia would be drawn as an Amazon, sitting upon a bank of flowers, drest in a green joseph, richly laced with gold, and a whip in her hand.
These allusions to Greek mythology create a comical atmosphere, given the wide gap between the grand vision being depicted and what they actually look like. While on the one hand there is something endearing to the unabashed wishful thinking they allow themselves, there is on the other hand something pitiful to their extravagant fantasies. The Primrose family may be respectable, but they have little splendor to boast of. From Dr. Primrose's description of his wife in the first chapter, the reader knows that she does not resemble the beautiful Greek goddess of love and fertility. And she certainly does not possess any diamonds. Dr. Primrose does not ask to be represented as anyone but himself, dressed in his vicar's gown and holding his books on monogamy. His desire to be depicted plainly is just as revealing as his family members' desire to be depicted fantastically, as it shows how seriously he takes himself. Additionally, the difference in how the husband and wife ask to be painted has an ironic effect, given that essentially all that the goddess Venus stands for clashes with Dr. Primrose's views on monogamy and marriage.
Additionally, it is revealing that Squire Thornhill asks to be included in the portrait as Alexander the Great, a ruthless military leader with a significant degree of megalomania. All of these requests shed light on how the characters see themselves, revealing their pathetic lack of self awareness:
Our taste so much pleased the ’Squire, that he insisted on being put in as one of the family in the character of Alexander the great, at Olivia’s feet.
The portrait's imagery is informed by the Primrose family's sense of competition and superiority vis-à-vis their neighbors the Flamboroughs. What results is a ridiculous collection of mythical and historical figures that do not complement each other. Their intention to appear wealthier and more refined than the Flamboroughs backfires with the absurd, tasteless painting that comes of it.
Related Themes:
Chapter 20
Explanation and Analysis—Aesop's Basket of Bread:
As George tells the story of his experiences since parting with his family, he uses a smile that alludes to the Aesop fable that is known as "Aesop and his Fellow Servants":
I set boldly forward the next morning. Every day lessened the burthen of my moveables, like Æsop and his basket of bread; for I paid them for my lodgings to the Dutch as I travelled on.
In the fable, Aesop and a number of other servants go on a journey and have to choose a sack to carry. When Aesop voluntarily carries the sack of bread, by far the heaviest, the other servants make fun of him for choosing the worst sack. At lunch, they stop and Aesop is requested to distribute bread to everyone from his sack. The same happens at dinner, at which point his sack is empty. On the rest of the journey, the other servants continue to carry heavy loads while Aesop is free from carrying anything.
George's allusion to this fable is somewhat ironic, because the lightening of Aesop's load is positive for Aesop whereas it is negative for George. In the fable, a lighter load means less to carry and therefore greater comfort and freedom. In George's situation, a lighter load indicates that his savings and possessions are dwindling. Over the course of his journey, he pays for his room and board with the little money and items he has with him. While it might in some way be nice to have less to carry, it is disconcerting to day by day give up more of one's personal items in exchange for shelter and food.
Related Themes:
