Allegory — Definition, Purpose, and Examples in Literature
What is an allegory?
On the surface, an allegory is a seemingly simplistic story (literal); however, under the surface, through the use of symbolic meaning and metaphors, it figuratively presents complex ideas that revolve around society or human nature.
Consider Aesop's fable of the tortoise and the hare. Despite being the slower of the two, the tortoise wins due to his steady nature, whereas the hare's arrogant personality is his downfall.
Established allegories (like "The Tortoise and the Hare") are often present in other works of literature. Authors subtly reference the main ideas detailed in the original allegory to help emphasize their point regarding society or human nature. These works echo past stories without explicitly identifying a direct connection.
Famous allegories include Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter.
Main purposes of an allegory
Allegories mainly provide commentary on larger, abstract ideas that reflect an author's views on political, moral, or philosophical issues. By using allegories, authors can simplify complex ideas or disguise controversial topics.
Simplify Complex Ideas: The seemingly ordinary aspects of the text become symbolic representations, providing the writer with the ability to illustrate complex concepts. Therefore, authors make it easier for readers to grasp the moral/lesson of the story.
Disguise Controversial Topics: By utilizing characters and settings that do not directly connect to the issue, an author’s use of allegory allows them to cover controversial subjects and hidden meanings that may be too difficult to discuss explicitly.
Types of allegory
Most allegories fall into one of four categories: Biblical, classical, modern, or historical/political.
Biblical: Biblical allegories reference biblical stories to convey teachings around Christianity. These stories typically focus on the nature of good and evil and the fall of man.
Lord of the Flies by William Golding: Golding's novel can be considered an allegory that represents the fall of man. Much like Adam and Eve give in to their instinctual needs (represented by eating the forbidden fruit), the boys give in to their desires. They eventually surrender to their inherent violent nature, destroying themselves and the island (Eden) in the process.
Classical: Classical allegories typically stem from Roman and Greek mythology and mainly focus on the origins of existence and humans' understanding of the world around them.
Daedalus and Icarus: Daedalus and his son, Icarus, craft wings made from feathers and wax to escape the island of Crete. The father warns the son not to fly too low, lest the damp sea would clog the wings, or too high, as the sun would melt the wax. However, Icarus' arrogance leads him to ignore his father's warnings. He flies too close to the sun, causing his wings to melt and him to fall and drown in the sea. The allegory illustrates the importance of moderation, suggesting that extremes (flying too close to the sea or the sun) can lead to disaster.
Modern: Modern allegories derive from literary works that the authors did not purposefully include.
Chronicles of Narnia: Many readers see the Chronicles of Narnia as an allegory for Christianity, with the lion Aslan representing Jesus, as both sacrificed themselves for the good of everyone else. However, author C.S. Lewis has directly stated that he did not purposefully write the novel as an allegory to Christianity.
Historical/Political: Allegories that include historical or political references often satirize (comedically/ironically critique) various past events.
Animal Farm by George Orwell: Orwell's novel is a political allegory that utilizes the uprising of animals on a farm to stand for the Russian Revolution and the transition from communism to totalitarianism. Instead of directly criticizing various forms of government, Orwell utilizes an allegory due to the polarizing nature of political ideology during the publication of the novel (1944-45).
Allegory examples
The following examples of allegories help illustrate a deeper meaning than what is apparent on the surface:
Horton Hears a Who: After World War II, Dr. Seuss used the story of Horton and the Whos as a reflection of the relationship between Americans and the Japanese. Due to the attack at Pearl Harbor, American sentiment toward the Japanese was extremely hostile. Therefore, Dr. Seuss utilizes the various characters as allegorical figures to highlight his message of befriending the Japanese:
The Whos: These minute characters represent the Japanese, who were metaphorically smaller due to the ramifications of WWII.
Vlad Vlad-i-koff: The eagle who takes the clover that contains the Whos represents the threat of the Soviet Union taking over Japan in their weakened state.
Horton: As the only animal who can hear the Whos, Horton represents Dr. Seuss' view of what America needs to be – Japan's protector. Ultimately, Horton believes "a person's a person no matter how small," indicating the respect he believes the Japanese should receive.
Zootopia: On the surface, this animated movie features anthropomorphic animals investigating a series of missing animal cases. However, there is a distinct divide in the city of Zootopia between predator and prey, a reference to racial segregation.
Throughout the movie, there is a suggestion that some animals are not as "tamed" as others. Certain predators begin to "give in" to their instinct and start attacking their "weaker" prey. Eventually, the protagonist finds out the behavior of the predators is not natural, as they unknowingly consume a substance that forces them to give in to their instinctual behavior.
Ultimately, Zootopia is an allegory for race relations. It critiques the idea that certain animals (people) are born with qualities they cannot control. However, the assistant mayor, a sheep who develops a drug that causes predators to act viciously, manipulates society into believing certain animals are more dangerous than others, reflecting the real-world conflict surrounding race relations.
Allegory in literature
In the following texts, the authors used allegories to enhance the meaning of their works:
The Crucible by Arthur Miller: Miller's infamous story of the Salem witch trials is an allegory critiquing McCarthyism and the search for communists in the 1950s. Senator Joseph McCarthy held a series of investigations to expose communists who had infiltrated the United States.
McCarthy accused individuals working for the government of being communists without substantial evidence to support the claims. While McCarthy did not prove any of these individuals had communistic ties, their reputations were tainted. Miller likened this time in American history to the Salem witch trials, where people accused others of witchcraft without substantial evidence to support the accusations, ultimately leading to the death of innocent people.
The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka: In The Metamorphosis, Kafka introduces his protagonist, Gregor, as a young man who one morning woke up transformed into a giant insect. While Gregor is the sole supporter of his family (parents and sister), his transformation forces him to remain isolated in his room, as both this family and employer are either afraid or disgusted by him. Eventually, his family starts to take responsibility for themselves, no longer needing Gregor and seeing him as a nuisance. Upon his death, Gregor's family is relieved that he is no longer a burden to them.
Kafka uses Gregor's transformation to critique society, suggesting that modernization results in a lack of connections. By transforming into a bug, Gregor is physically grotesque and cannot provide any advantage to his family. His current state does not allow him to continue working to provide for them. As his family changes to survive without him, Gregor becomes useless in their eyes – a burden. Therefore, Kafka uses his death as a form of release for the family, highlighting the deterioration of relationships in the modern era.
Allegory vs. metaphor
A metaphor is a literary device writers use to compare unrelated objects or actions. While an allegory also references unrelated ideas, it typically extends throughout the story.
Adam and Eve: In a biblical story, Adam and Eve give in to temptation by eating the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, which God had forbidden them to do. The two are then cast out of the Garden of Eden.
Allegory: The story itself is an allegory that represents the impact of giving in to temptation.
Metaphor: The fruit Adam and Eve eat is a metaphor that represents the knowledge of good and evil. Consuming the fruit is a crucial part of the allegory; if Adam and Eve had avoided the fruit (knowledge of good and evil), God would not have cast them out of Eden. Therefore, the fruit plays into the fall of Adam and Eve stemming from temptation.
