Using the text on the chart above, identify the phrase that makes an allusion in the text on the left. Then explain the allusion. Type your answer below.

Question

Allusion
Clearly, some people put more trust in social
media than they should. Social media sites seem
like a fun way to stay in touch with friends and
pass the time. What many do not realize, is that
these seemingly harmless sites are really a
Trojan horse. With every click you make, the site
will collect information about you and use it in
ways that you never imagined or agreed to.

Source
According to Virgil's Aeneid, the Greek leader
Odysseus hatched a plan to defeat Troy in the
Trojan War.
The army built a giant, hollow wooden horse.
The army was actually hidden in the horse's
belly, making it look like the army had fled.

Answer 1

Allusion: The phrase "a Trojan horse" makes an allusion in the text.

Explanation of the Allusion: The allusion refers to the famous story from Virgil's Aeneid regarding the Trojan War, where the Greeks used a deceptive tactic to infiltrate the city of Troy. They created a large wooden horse that concealed a group of soldiers inside. The Trojans, believing the horse was a gift and that the Greek army had withdrawn, brought it into the city, allowing the hidden soldiers to emerge at night and open the gates for the rest of the Greek army. In the context of the text, describing social media as a "Trojan horse" suggests that these platforms appear harmless and beneficial on the surface (like the horse) but are actually vehicles for hidden dangers, such as data collection and manipulation, which can lead to negative consequences for users.

Answer 2

describe in a short and simple sentence what an "allusion" is

Answer 3

An allusion is a reference to a well-known person, place, event, or work of art that is used to enhance meaning or context in a text.

Answer 4

can you simplify the trojan horse thing?

Answer 5

The Trojan horse was a clever tactic used by the Greeks to sneak into the city of Troy. They built a large wooden horse, hid soldiers inside, and left it at the gates. The Trojans brought the horse into the city, thinking it was a gift, which allowed the Greeks to attack from within.

Answer 6

Background: In the story The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dr. Henry
Jekyll develops a serum that can turn him into another person, an evil and selfish
man. He turns back and forth between these two radically different personas. He is
an upstanding, sociable person as Dr. Jekyll, and then turns into the murderous,
uncaring Hyde after drinking the serum.
In a newspaper column, a writer says that a mayor should not be re-elected:
Which Mayor Jones are we going to see next year? The one who loves to shake
hands at train stations, or the one who heartlessly reduced the benefits of city
workers? We’ve seen enough of his Jekyll and Hyde routine to know that we can’t
trust him.

What does the author mean by the allusion in the newspaper column?

Answer 7

The author uses the allusion to "Jekyll and Hyde" to suggest that Mayor Jones has two very different sides to his personality or behavior. Just like Dr. Jekyll transforms into the evil Mr. Hyde, the mayor appears friendly and approachable at times while also displaying a harsh and uncaring side, especially when he made cuts to city workers' benefits. The writer implies that Mayor Jones’s inconsistent behavior makes him untrustworthy, as it’s unclear which version of him will show up in the future—his amiable side or his ruthless side.

Answer 8

Read this text from an editorial:
If we continue to try to save these low-lying coastal lands as sea levels rise, we
will be caught in an endless cycle of rebuilding and repair. It will be a Sisyphean
struggle, never concluding, always doomed to fail.
Can you find the allusion in these sentences? You may not be familiar with the
word Sisyphean, which is an allusion to another text.
To decode the allusion, type Sisyphean into an internet search engine.
You may find links that provide dictionary definitions of the word, but the definition
tells you only that the word describes something related to the Greek mythological
character Sisyphus. Next, look up Sisyphus. This brings you to this description:
In Greek mythology, Sisyphus was a king who was punished by the gods after
death. In his life in the underworld, he was forced to spend eternity pushing a rock
up a hill, only to see it roll back down before he reached the top.

Based on the information provided, what is a “Sisyphean struggle”?

Answer 9

A "Sisyphean struggle" refers to a task or effort that is endless and futile, where no matter how much work is put in, success is never achieved. Just like Sisyphus in Greek mythology, who was condemned to eternally push a rock up a hill only for it to roll back down every time he neared the top, a Sisyphean struggle implies a never-ending cycle of striving without any hopeful outcome or resolution. In the context of the editorial, it suggests that attempts to save low-lying coastal lands from rising sea levels may be fruitless and lead to continuous rebuilding efforts without lasting success.

Answer 10

describe and analogy, connotation, denotation, meaning, tone, and word choice in very short sentences please

Answer 11

Sure! Here are the descriptions in very short sentences:

1. Analogy: A comparison between two different things to highlight similarities.

2. Connotation: The emotional or cultural meaning attached to a word beyond its literal definition.

3. Denotation: The literal, dictionary definition of a word.

4. Meaning: The idea or concept that a word or text conveys.

5. Tone: The author's attitude or feeling toward the subject, conveyed through words.

6. Word Choice: The specific words an author selects to convey their message or tone.