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Literary Devices
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
Letter 56
Explanation and Analysis—Jesus's Hair:
In the following passage from Letter 56, Nettie breaks down her revelation about the Bible and race for Celie's benefit, using simile to make important connections:
It is the pictures in the bible that fool you. The pictures that illustrate the words. All of the people are white and so you just think all the people from the bible were white too. But really white white people lived somewhere else during those times. That’s why the bible says that Jesus Christ had hair like lamb’s wool. Lamb’s wool is not straight, Celie. It isn’t even curly.
Nettie states in this passage that "Jesus Christ had hair like lamb's wool." This simile alludes to a passage from the New Testament book of Revelation: "The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire" (Revelation 1:14). Upon learning that Jesus was not white, Nettie interprets this passage differently, taking it to mean that Jesus's hair texture bore a closer resemblance to that of Black people than that of white Europeans.
Majority-white Christian narratives in the U.S. often depict Jesus as a white man, when in fact he was not. This realization is important to both Nettie and Celie's paths to self-discovery and personal dignity. Through the "lamb's wool" simile, both women come to view Jesus as one of their own, instead of as a white supremacist figurehead. This series of events imbues both women with feelings of greater agency and self-worth.
Related Themes:
