1. hobbies and interests
2. magic and illusion

Allusion
What on earth are you
referring to???
What am I referring to?
Sometimes, I feel
like Atlas-carrying
the weight of the
world on my
shoulders.
What am I referring to?
She had the
wisdom of
Athena and the
beauty of
Aphrodite.
What am I referring to?
Her smile was shy
but coy. It reminded
me of a more
famous smile that I
once saw on a
painting…
So what is it?
These were all examples of
Allusion
Think about these examples
and define allusion.
What are you doing when you
allude to something?
Think-Pair-Share!
Discuss your answer
with a partner to come
up with a solid
definition for allusion.
Prentice Hall Literature says…
An allusion is a reference to a well-
known person, place, event, literary
work, or work of art.
Writers usually do not explain their
allusions. They expect that their
readers will be familiar with the
things to which they refer.
Allusion in Music
Listen to the following song
and see if you can hear the
allusions
I will show the lyrics for you
to follow along with
Lyrics
Allusion vs. Illusion
The noun allusion means "an
indirect reference to a person,
event, or thing."
Illusion is a noun that means
"false impression."
1. Were the horizontal lines
straight or slanted?
2. Take a second look.
3. Well?
***That is an example of
illusion
The cinnamon rolls were huge
and golden brown, reminiscent
of the twisted buns on the sides
of a certain Jedi princess’s head.
 Tracy, teaching
candidate at the
University of
La Verne
The romance between
that man and I was not
a great Shakespearean
tragedy, but we would
sacrifice everything for
each other
Hieu Nguyen, in
Grade 9

My friends and I were the
real three stooges
because we were horsing
around and pushing and
shoving each other.
Nick in Grade 7 at Lufkin
Road Middle School
The family of three
sat there like the
three bears eating
their porridge.
-Arielle Avant in
Grade 9 at Cheyenne
Mountain H. S.
 I was supposed to go out with my friends,
but my plans were changed. All of my
siblings were gone, but I had been in the
house slaving like Cinderella, scrubbing the
floors on my hands and knees, washing
clothes and dishes and making everyone’s
beds
- from Crystal B.
in Grade 11 at
Oakland high
"I am afraid of spiders, but
I'm no cowardly lion!
-from Emily
in Grade 6
at Worsley
School.
Connection to Text
Can you find the
allusions in the
following poems?
Create Your Own!
On the index card, create your own
sentence using allusion
Write your name on the BACK
We will attempt to guess whose
sentence it is
If you are looking for more the next 50
slides are an allusion game.
Watch the following
commercial:
Name three of the
Star Wars’ characters
alluded to in this
scene.
Name three of the
characters alluded
to in this scene.
C3PO
Princess Leia
Darth Vader
How does the
allusion in
“American Pie”
help to define the
theme?
How does the allusion in
“American Pie” help to define the
theme?
Did you
restate the ?
and answer
it?
Did you provide
evidence and
explain it?
In the song “American Pie,” the
reference to Buddy Holly helps to
define the issue of loss in “American
Pie.” Buddy Holly was the “next Elvis
Presley” who stole the show with his
antics and guitar. His plane crashed
unexpectedly and ended his life with
two other singers. Many thought that
this would be the end to rock-n-roll.
This unexpected death and “widow”
lead to Don McLean’s song about his
own end of innocence. It defines the
idea that we may not live long.
Watch the following scene from Finding Nemo:
Alcoholics
Anonymous
Name two artists
(music or visual) that
B.o.B. uses as
allusion.
Name two artist (music or visual) that
B.o.B. uses as allusion.
Michelangelo
Gershwin
Picasso
DaVinci
What do the
allusions tell you
about the girl?
What do the allusions tell you
about the girl?
With what do
we start?
Then what?
Next step
after that?
Listen to first 1:25:
Why is the
song entitled
“Kryptonite”?
What parts of
a
constructed
response are
used?
What
problem
does this
have?
Why is the song entitled
“Kryptonite”?
The song is entitled
“Kryptonite” to show that
though the singer is referred
to as Superman, he has a
weakness and fear. “If I go
crazy, then will you still call
me Superman?” He feels like
he has a weakness that he
must hide but wants to show.
This weakness is his
kryptonite.
Why does Lil Wayne
refer to Michael
Phelps in this song?
Use picture clues
and song lyrics to
prove your point.
Why does Lil Wayne refer to Michael
Phelps in this song? Use picture clues
and song lyrics to prove your point.
Lil Wayne starts his song
dedicating it to Michael Phelps
because he sees himself as a
winner like Phelps. Phelps won
more gold medals as mentioned in
one of the pictures, and he showed
the spirit of winning in the
Olympics. In the song he talked
about how his “mind was on
succeed,” similar in idea to
Michael Phelps. The title of the
song “I’m a Go Getta” reflects why
Lil Wayne used Michael Phelps.