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Discover the expert in you.
An allegory is a creative work that uses symbolic representations, through characters or events, to convey an underlying philosophy about human values or beliefs. The fable or parable are two forms of allegorical writing that teach a lesson to the reader. Writing an allegory will take a lot of thought and preparation as you plan how to hide your philosophy in the context of an enjoyable story.
Written and published in 1945 by English author George Orwell, "Animal Farm" was intended to be an allegorical story in regard to the Russian Revolution. Within the story itself, there are indeed examples of propaganda referring to the ideals of the era. Orwell used the characters and setting of "Animal Farm" to explain how political propaganda can unravel the fabric of society.
An allegory is a piece of literature that uses a literal tale as a stand-in for an underlying theme, message or metaphor. Allegories can come in all forms of literature from Bible passages and epic poems to science fiction/fantasy tales. All allegories follow a similar pattern. They use characters, plot, imagery or any other literary tool as a metaphor for deeper meanings. In order to analyze allegorical implications in literature, it is important first to read closely and pay attention to the different elements the writer uses.
In literature allegory is used as a symbolic device to represent abstract ideas or principles beyond the surface meaning. Allegorical subjects, items or characters have a literal meaning as well as a figurative one. Recognizing allegory is an important part of literary analysis. Follow these steps to spot allegory in literature.
