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Use Of Allusions In Extremely Loud And A Farewell To Arms

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Allusions are a crucial part of most literature. It helps the audience understand the text and provides an insight into what the author might be thinking. Throughout both Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and A Farewell to Arms there are allusions ranging from the bible to 9/11. Both authors use these allusions to tell a story. First, let’s talk about Extremely Loud and Incredible Close. Throughout this book there are many allusions that point to the horrors of war and the effect of those wars on the civilians who fall victim to them. One of the most referred to allusions in here is 9/11. The whole book is based around the effects of Oskar’s dad dying in the 9/11 attacks. However, this is not the entire narrative of the book, but the author throws in ruptures like this one… “Sometimes I think it would be weird if there were a skyscraper that moved up and down while its elevator stayed in place. So, if you wanted to go to the 95th floor, you’d just press the 95 button and the 95th floor would come to you. Also, that could be extremely useful, because if you’re on the 95th floor, and a plane hits below you, the building could take you to the ground, and everyone could be safe” (Foer 3). The reason that this allusion has such an impact in this chapter is because up to that point in the book we don’t know much of who Oskar is and what he has been through. The fact that this is just thrown in there makes people pay attention. It sets a tone that this book is not going to be a

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