THE STYLISTIC POWER OF ALLUSIONNever affirm, always allude: allusions are made to test the spirit and probe the heart. Umberto Eco In the last decade the linguists take a great interest not into visible, formal signs of expression which report something supplementary to the primary content, but such signs which can be found only due to the deep intrusion into the context of work, its form and facture of units of language as well. In this case the great interest is put on the research of such stylistic device as an allusion.

What is an allusion ? The linguistic nature of allusions is rather broad and complex, so its not easy to provide a clear definition of this term. The origin of the term " allusion " from the Latin "alludere" to laugh, to hint ("luder" to play) dates to the middle of XVI century. Considering the historical development of the concept, Harold Bloom highlights the word " illusion " (illusion) as a synonym of allusion. During the early Renaissance allusion was identified with a pun, play on words, so that it was used in the works of satirical nature. At the time of Francis Bacon (1561-1626) under the allusion many linguists understood any similarities to symbolic allegory, metaphor or parabola. Only since the beginning of XVII century, H. Bloom developed allusion as indirect link that contained a hint. According to I. R. Galperin allusion is an indirect reference, word or phrase, to a historical, literary, mythological, biblical fact or to a fact of everyday life made in the course of speaking or writing. The use of allusion presupposes knowledge of the fact, thing or person alluded to on the part of the reader or listener. As a rule no indication of the source is given. According to Ckrebnev Y. M. allusion is a special variety of metaphor it is a brief reference to some literary or historical event commonly known. The speaker (writer) need not to be explicit about what he means: he merely mentions some details of what he thinks analogous in fiction or history to the topic discussed. Of course, the educational level of the listener (reader) is expected to be sufficient to grasp the level sense of the message.Sources of allusionsThe King James (Authorized) version of BibleEnglish literature (poetry, prose, drama) of different epochsShakespeares worksAncient literature and mythologyHistorical reminiscencesUtterances of historical persons and about themArtMusicHistory of literatureWorld literature (in the original and translation)Folklore (proverbs, sayings)Childrens versesClassification of allusions According to the English-language dictionary of literary terms most complete classification of allusions include:topical allusion (allusion - a reference to recent events);personal allusion (a reference to the facts of the biography of the writer) ;metaphorical allusion (aims to transfer more information); imitative allusion (implicit allusion that mimics the style of other writers);structural allusion (reflects the structure of another work) [Baldick C. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms / C. Balddick. Oxford, New-York: Oxford University Press, 2008. 368 p.] Russian researcher M. D. Tuhareli identifies the following kinds of allusions: anthroponoms - proper names; zoonyms - the names of animals and birds; Toponyms - place names; kosmonims - the names of the planets and stars; ktematonims - the names of historical events, holidays, etc. theonyms - the names of gods, demons, mythological figures, biblical, mythological, literary, historical, and other realities [ . . / . . // . : ., 1984. . 297 303.]Stylistic functions of allusionsThe main stylistic functions of allusions are: the ideological function (the transmission of national mentality); to strengthen the visual problems; the function of reproduction of social and political atmosphere;polemical function, based on the creation of ironic effect.informative function;entertaining function;emotive function; evaluative function; aesthetic function. Allusions can also play a significant role in the realization of the main functions - informative, contributing to a better perception and memorization of content and involve associative possibilities for this recipient.The example of geographical allusion He said mechanically, Thats goods, while his heart beat with its secret love. He said, Im very tired. The police were near Zapata Why didnt you make for Monte Cristo? [The power and the glory by Graham Greene, 1940]. This geographical allusion refers to the famous island in the Mediterranean Sea, which is the part of the Tuscany Archipelago. The Italian "Isola di Montecristo", means "Christs hill" This is one of the most famous islands of the Mediterranean Sea due to A. Dumas novel "The Count of Monte Cristo" Since ancient times, there is a legend about this island, that there are hidden treasures. The author uses this allusion to show the attitude of the villagers to the priest who by his presence puts them at risk.

The allusion expressing local coloring At home I mean in England it was generally the Laughing Cavalier I dont know why or else a Tudor rose. But one cant pick and choose [The power and the glory by Graham Greene, 1940].The Laughing Cavalier is one of the most famous portraits in the world, written by a Dutch Golden Age painter - Frans Hals in 1624. In this novel, this picture means the logo of beer (Mc Evran's beer) was founded in 1856. The emblem shows how "Laughing Cavalier" enjoys beer. This allusion transfers function of showing the local coloring in which the use of English beer was a daily affair.

The example of biblical allusion His mind was full of a simplified mythology: Michael dressed in armour slew a dragon, and the angels fell through space like comets with beautiful streaming hair [The power and the glory by Graham Greene, 1940]. This biblical allusion (Revelation 12:24) is a reference to the famous icon depicting St. Michael, who is killing the dragon (Satan). This episode is described in the "Book of Revelation", more known as"Apocalypse" - the last book of the Christian Bible. This allusion is used to show the ultimate victory of good over evil. This allusion reveals conditions of validity of the protagonist, drawing parallels between him and St. Michael.

The example of theonyms It was too easy otherwise to idealize him as a man who fought with God a Prometheus, a noble victim in a hopeless war "Prometheus" - in Greek mythology - is a titanium, who is resoponsible for the creation of man from clay, and who challenges the gods, and gives people the fire for what would later be punished. Prometheus is known for his wit and love for people. This allusion is sarcastic in its nature, since in fact the author draws parallels between the two characters, showing that "whisky priest" has no intention of helping people and think only about his own salvation.

Allusion as any other stylistic device is informative and the level of its informativity is extremely high as we can see from all the essential notes characterizing informative report, the unit of language. Given stylistic device lets the readers get not only the information which is filled in the text but to know the authors point of view on one or another describing phenomenon.