Marble Faun Allusion

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Literary devices are widely used in The Age of Innocence to heighten the sophistication of the novel. There are various instances where one can see a wide variety of devices being used.
Simile: “Everything about her shimmered and glimmered softly, as if her dress had been woven out of candle-beams; and she carried her head high, like a pretty woman challenging a roomful of rivals” (Chapter 18, page 138). This description of Ellen Olenska highlights how beautiful she is. The comparison of the glimmering of her dress to candle-beams gives a visual of how radiant the dress is that she wears. Her head being held high correlating to challenging a roomful of rivals is used as an excellent description of the confidence that she emits. The use of two similes in the same sentence highlights their effectiveness in describing Ellen’s physical appearance. …show more content…
This quote uses an allusion to a work by Nathaniel Hawthorne, titled The Marble Faun, a very popular romance by an extremely well-known and well respected novelist and short story writer. The use of the allusion is a sign of the times. It demonstrates an example of a work of literature that was popular and held importance during the period of the 1870s which many people took great interest

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