Literary notes about alluded (AI summary)
In literature, the word "alluded" serves as a device for hinting at ideas, events, or figures without explicitly naming them, thereby inviting readers to draw upon their broader cultural or historical knowledge. Authors use it to subtly reference well-known works or past occurrences, as when a classical epic is indirectly invoked [1] or when a character's past association is evoked without full exposition [2]. This technique enriches the narrative by layering meaning—whether it is a nod to mythological figures [3] or a delicate reference to a previously introduced subject [4]—while simultaneously engaging the reader in a more active interpretation of the text [5].
- 677 Alluded to again "On the tranquillity of the mind," § i. 678 The allusion is to Homer's "Odyssey," xx. 23.
— from Plutarch's Morals by Plutarch - I may here mention that this discovery is the one to which I alluded in the opening pages of my story.
— from Erewhon; Or, Over the Range by Samuel Butler - Vishṇu, for instance, is thus alluded to:— Another with his mighty stride has made three steps To where the gods rejoice in bliss.
— from A History of Sanskrit Literature by Arthur Anthony Macdonell - But Mr. Woodhouse—how was Mr. Woodhouse to be induced to consent?—he, who had never yet alluded to their marriage but as a distant event.
— from Emma by Jane Austen - The nineteenth century has inherited and profited by its work, and to-day, the social catastrophe to which we lately alluded is simply impossible.
— from Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
