Editing Allegory (section)

==Poetry and fiction==

[[File:Allegory of Arithmetic - detail.JPG|thumb|Detail of [[Laurent de La Hyre]]'s ''Allegory of Arithmetic'', {{Circa|1650}}]]
While allegoresis may make discovery of allegory in any work, not every resonant work of modern fiction is allegorical, and some are clearly not intended to be viewed this way. According to Henry Littlefield's 1964 article, [[L. Frank Baum]]'s ''[[The Wonderful Wizard of Oz]]'', may be readily understood as a plot-driven fantasy narrative in an extended fable with talking animals and broadly sketched characters, intended to discuss the politics of the time.<ref>Littlefield, Henry (1964). "The Wizard of Oz: Parable on Populism". ''American Quarterly'', 16 (1): 47–58. {{doi|10.2307/2710826}}.</ref> Yet, [[George MacDonald]] emphasized in 1893 that "A fairy tale is not an allegory."<ref name="Baum2000">{{cite book |first=L. Frank |last=Baum |author-link= L. Frank Baum |title= The Annotated Wizard of Oz: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz |url= https://archive.org/details/annotatedwizardo0000baum |url-access=registration |date=2000 |publisher=Norton |isbn=978-0-393-04992-3 |page=[https://archive.org/details/annotatedwizardo0000baum/page/101 101]}}</ref>

[[J. R. R. Tolkien]]'s ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'' is another example of a well-known work mistakenly perceived as allegorical, as the author himself once stated, "...I cordially dislike allegory in all its manifestations, and always have done so since I grew old and wary enough to detect its presence. I much prefer history – true or feigned – with its varied applicability to the thought and experience of readers. I think that many confuse applicability with allegory, but one resides in the freedom of the reader, and the other in the purposed domination of the author."<ref name="BogstadKaveny2011">{{cite book |editor-first=Janice M. |editor-last=Bogstad |editor2-first=Philip E. |editor2-last=Kaveny |title=Picturing Tolkien:Essays on Peter Jackson's ''The Lord of the Rings'' Film Trilogy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jNjKrXRP0G8C&pg=PA189 |date=9 August 2011 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-0-7864-8473-7 |page=189}}</ref>

Tolkien specifically resented the suggestion that the book's [[One Ring]], which gives overwhelming power to those possessing it, was intended as an allegory of [[nuclear weapons]]. He noted that, had that been his intention, the book would not have ended with the Ring being destroyed but rather with an [[arms race]] in which various powers would try to obtain such a Ring for themselves. Then Tolkien went on to outline an alternative plot for "Lord of The Rings", as it would have been written had such an allegory been intended, and which would have made the book into a [[dystopia]]. While all this does not mean Tolkien's works may not be treated as having allegorical themes, especially when reinterpreted through postmodern sensibilities, it at least suggests that none were conscious in his writings. This further reinforces the idea of forced allegoresis, as allegory is often a matter of interpretation and only sometimes of original artistic intention.

Like allegorical stories, allegorical poetry has two meanings – a literal meaning and a symbolic meaning.

Some unique specimens of allegory can be found in the following works:
*[[Edmund Spenser]] &ndash; ''[[The Faerie Queene]]'': The several knights in the poem actually stand for several virtues.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Faerie Queene {{!}} work by Spenser|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Faerie-Queene|access-date=2020-10-12|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref>
*[[William Shakespeare]] &ndash; ''[[The Tempest]]'': an allegory of the civilisation/barbarism binary as it pertains to colonialism
*[[John Bunyan]] &ndash; ''[[The Pilgrim's Progress]]'': The journey of the protagonists Christian and Evangelist symbolises the ascension of the soul from earth to Heaven.
*[[Nathaniel Hawthorne]] &ndash; ''[[Young Goodman Brown]]'': The Devil's Staff symbolises defiance of God. The characters' names, such as ''Goodman'' and ''Faith'', ironically serve as paradox in the conclusion of the story.
*[[Nathaniel Hawthorne]] &ndash; ''[[The Scarlet Letter]]'': The letter represents self-reliance from America's Puritan and conformity.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The Scarlet Letter {{!}} Summary, Analysis, Characters, & Facts|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Scarlet-Letter-novel-by-Hawthorne|access-date=2020-10-12|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref>
*[[Esteban Echeverría]] &ndash; ''[[The Slaughter Yard|The Slaughter Yard]]:'' The slaughter yard represents the violence and brutality of the [[Federal Pact|Federalist]] regime of [[Juan Manuel de Rosas]] in [[Buenos Aires Province|Buenos Aires]] and his [[parapolice]] thugs, the ''[[Mazorca]]''.
*[[George Orwell]] &ndash; ''[[Animal Farm]]'': The pigs stand for political figures of the [[Russian Revolution]].<ref>{{Cite web|title='Animal Farm': Andy Serkis-directed adaptation of George Orwell's allegory acquired by Netflix – Wonderfully Curated News|url=https://wcregisteronline.com/2020/10/12/animal-farm-andy-serkis-directed-adaptation-of-george-orwells-allegory-acquired-by-netflix/|access-date=2020-10-12|language=en-US}}</ref>
*[[Julio Cortázar]] &ndash; ''[[Casa Tomada]]:'' The take over of the protagonists' house is said to represent [[Peronism]] taking over [[Argentina]].
*[[László Krasznahorkai]] – ''[[The Melancholy of Resistance]]'' and the film ''[[Werckmeister Harmonies]]'': It uses a circus to describe an occupying dysfunctional government.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Romm|first=Jake|date=2017-04-26|title=Misery Loves Company|url=https://thenewinquiry.com/misery-loves-company/|access-date=2020-10-12|website=The New Inquiry|language=en-US}}</ref>
*[[Edgar Allan Poe]] &ndash; ''[[The Masque of the Red Death]]'': The story can be read as an allegory for humans' inability to escape death.<ref>Roppolo, Joseph Patrick. "Meaning and 'The Masque of the Red Death'", collected in Poe: A Collection of Critical Essays, edited by Robert Regan. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1967. p. 137.</ref>
*[[Arthur Miller]] &ndash; ''[[The Crucible]]'': The [[Salem witch trials]] are thought to be an allegory for [[McCarthyism]] and the [[blacklisting]] of [[Communists]] in the [[United States|United States of America]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Sullivan |first=James |date=October 2, 2020|title=What really made Salem the Witch City – The Boston Globe|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/10/02/metro/what-really-made-salem-witch-city/|access-date=2020-10-12|website=BostonGlobe.com}}</ref>
*[[Shel Silverstein]] &ndash; ''[[The Giving Tree]]'': The book has been described as an allegory about relationships; between parents and children, between romantic partners, or between humans and the environment.

===Art===
Some elaborate and successful specimens of allegory are to be found in the following works, arranged in approximate chronological order:
*[[Ambrogio Lorenzetti]] &ndash; ''[[The Allegory of Good and Bad Government|Allegoria del Buono e Cattivo Governo e loro Effetti in Città e Campagna]]'' ({{Circa|1338–1339}})
*[[Sandro Botticelli]] &ndash; ''[[Primavera (Botticelli)|Primavera]]'' ({{Circa|1482}})
*[[Albrecht Dürer]] &ndash; ''[[Melencolia I]]'' (1514)
*[[Bronzino]] &ndash; ''[[Venus, Cupid, Folly and Time]]'' ({{Circa|1545}})
*[[English art|The English School's]] &ndash; ''"Allegory of Queen Elizabeth"'' ({{Circa|1610}})
*[[Artemisia Gentileschi]] &ndash; ''[[Allegory of Inclination]]'' ({{Circa|1620}}), ''An Allegory of Peace and the Arts under the English Crown'' (1638); ''[[Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting (Artemisia Gentileschi)|Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting]]'' ({{Circa|1638–39}})
* The ''[[Feast of Herod with the Beheading of St John the Baptist]]'' by [[Bartholomeus Strobel]] is also an allegory of Europe in the time of the [[Thirty Years' War]], with portraits of many leading political and military figures.
*[[Jan Vermeer]] &ndash; ''[[The Art of Painting|Allegory of Painting]]'' ({{Circa|1666}})
*Fernand Le Quesne – ''[[c:File:Fernand_Le_Quesne_-_Allégorie_de_la_publicité.jpg|Allégorie de la publicité]]''
*[[Jean-Léon Gérôme]] &ndash; ''[[Truth Coming Out of Her Well]]'' (1896)
*[[Graydon Parrish]] &ndash; ''[[The Cycle of Terror and Tragedy]]'' (2006)
*Many statues of [[Lady Justice]]: "Such visual representations have raised the question why so many allegories in the history of art, pertaining occupations once reserved for men only, are of female sex."<ref>[[Cäcilia Rentmeister]]: The Muses, Banned From Their Occupations: Why Are There So Many Allegories Female? [http://www.cillie-rentmeister.de/themen/english/ English summary from Kvinnovetenskaplig Tidskrift, Nr.4. 1981, Lund, Sweden as PDF. Retrieved 10.July 2011] Original Version in German: ''Berufsverbot für die Musen. Warum sind so viele Allegorien weiblich?'' In: Ästhetik und Kommunikation, Nr. 25/1976, S. 92–112. Langfassung in: Frauen und Wissenschaft. Beiträge zur Berliner Sommeruniversität für Frauen, Juli 1976, Berlin 1977, S.258–297. With illustrations. [http://www.cillie-rentmeister.de/berufsverbot-fuer-die-musen/ Full Texts Online: Cäcilia (Cillie) Rentmeister: publications]</ref>
*[[Damien Hirst]] [[Verity (sculpture)|''Verity'']] (2012)