ALLUSIONS....
ALLUSIONS are indirect references to real or fictional persons, things, places, or events
a vulnerable spot or a weak point
[Genesis: Thetis dipped her son Achilles in the river Styx, making him invulnerable, except in the heel by which she held on to him. That is the spot where he was mortally wounded by an arrow.]
Armageddon
a vast, decisive battle
[Genesis: The Bible prophesies that the final battle between the forces of good and evil will take place before the end of the world at a place called Armageddon.]
bell the cat
do a daring, risky deed for the sake of others
[Genesis: A wise mouse, according to a fable, suggested that a bell be hung around the cat's neck to warn of its approach, but none of the mice had the courage to do it.]
between Scylla and Charybdis
between two equally difficult alternatives, neither of which can be avoided without incurring the other
[Genesis: In Homer's Odyssey, Odysseus has to guide his ship between Scylla, a man-eating monster on the Italian side of the narrow Strait of Messina, and Charybdis, a whirlpool on the Sicilian side.]
carry coals to Newcastle
take something to a place where it is plentiful and not needed,do something superflous
[Genesis: Newcastle, an English seaport, is a coal center.]
Catch-22
paradox (contradiction) in an order or regulation that makes people victims of the provisions, regardless of what they do
[Genesis: Catch-22, a novel by Joseph Heller, satirizes victimizing situations in the military. ]
crocodile tears
false tears; insincere show of grief
[Genesis: It used to be believed that crocodiles shed tears while devouring their victims. ]
cross the Rubicon
take a decisive, irrevocable step
[Genesis: In 49B.C., Caesar's enemies ordered him to return from his conquests without his army. Caesar knew that to cross the Rubicon River with his army would be to invade Roman soil and start a civil war- a step from which there would be no going back, but he took the gamble. ]
cry wolf
give alarm without occasion; give a false alarm
[Genesis: This is an allusion to the fable in which a shepherd boy cries the alarm "wolf" as a joke. ]
dog in the manger
person who prevents others from using something he or she cannot use or does not need
[Genesis: A dog in one of Aesop's fables positioned himself in a manger (feed-box for cattle) and prevented an ox from eating hay. ]
fifth column
subversive group of civilians working sectretly within their own country to turn it over to an invading enemy
[Genesis: General Mola, advancing on Madrid with four columns in 1936, said that he would be aided by a fifth column of sympathizers within the city. ]
fourth estate
reporters; the press; journalism
[Genesis: Edmund Burke is alleged to have so designated the Reporters' Gallery. The traditional three estates (classes) were the Clergy, the Noblity, and the Commons. ]
Freudian slip
slip of the tongue by which it is thought a person unintentionally reveals his or her true feelings
Hobson's choice
choice of taking what is offered or nothing at all
[Genesis: Thomas Hobson, who ran a horse rental in the seventeenth century, required each customer to take the horse nearest the stable door. ]
hoist with one's own petard
blown up with one's own bomb; victimized by one's own schemes
[Genesis: Rosenkrantz and Guildenstern. Hamlet's false friends, accompany him to England with sealed instructions that he is to be murdered there, Hamlet secretly alters the instructions so that they, not he, meet that fate.They are hoist with their own petard. ]
juggernaut
massive, irresistible force crushing everything in its path
[Genesis: Juggernaut is a name of the Hindu god Vishnu, and hence of his idol and the huge car on which it is annually hauled in a procession. Worshippers are alleged to have thrown themselves under its wheels to be crushed. ]
last straw
final test of patience or endurance
[Genesis: The fabled last straw, when added , broke the camel's back because the animal had already been loaded to the limit. ]
Midas touch
talent for making money in any enterprise one engages in
[Genesis: Midas, mythical king of Phyrgia, had the power of turning everything he touched into gold.]
Murphy's Law
satirical maxim stating that if anything can go wrong, it will
open sesame
any means or formula that works like magic to help one achieve a desired end
[Genesis: "Open sesame" are the magic words that opened the door of the robbers' den in 'Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves'. ]
Pandora's box
source of extensive unforeseen troubles
[Genesis: Beautiful Pandora,the first mortal woman according to Greek mythology, received a box she was forbidden to open, but she did, releasing all the ills that have since plagued the world.]
Parkinson's Law
satirical maxim about the lack of productivity, stating that work expands to fill the time available for its completion; also that the number of subordinates increases regardless of the amount of work produced
[Genesis: Observations by the British economist C. Northcote Parkinson. ]
Pyrrhic victory
victory achieved at ruinous cost
[Genesis: Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, sustained unacceptably high losses in defeating the Romans at Asculum in 279B.C. ]
sour grapes
disparagement of something that one does not or cannot have
[Genesis: A fox in one of Aesop's fables, frustrated in his efforts to reach some grapes, tried to save face by saying they were sour. ]
donnybrook
an "uproarious brawl" or "free-for-all"
[Genesis: Donnybrook Fair,dating from 1204, was held annually in Donnybrook, a suburb of Dublin, Ireland. Notorious for its brawling and rowdiness, the fair was discontinued in 1855. ]
Lilliputians
petty, insignificant, narrow-minded people
[Genesis: Lilliput, in Jonathan Swift's Gulliver'sTravels, is an imaginary island, whose inhabitants are no more than six inches tall.]
posted by Sumit Raina @ 11:37 PM
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