The Pearl An Introduction

● An allegory is a story containing two levels of meaning. ● First, there's the surface of the story (characters and plot) ● Then there's the symbolic level- deeper meaning that all the surface details represent. ● The symbolic meaning of an allegory can be political or religious, historical or philosophical/moral. ● Allegories are kind of like massive metaphors, but they usually come in narrative form—that is, they're told through stories. ● Also referred to as a fable Allegory- What is it?

● The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis: famous religious allegory. The lion Aslan is a stand-in for Christ, and the character of Edmund, who betrays Aslan, is a Judas figure.religious allegory ● Animal Farm by George Orwell: is a political allegory- Though set in a barnyard, the novel also tells the story of the rise of the Communist party in Russia. Although on the surface, the story may seem to be about a bunch of talking farm animals, the characters and actions in the plot can be directly interpreted as a representation of political events in Russian history Allegory Examples

The Sneetches by Dr. Seuss Silly creatures spend their all their days thinking about how special/terrible they are because of the star they have/don't have on their bellies. A opportunistic person comes along and gets them to spend all their money changing their belly stars. In the end they learn that the stars didn't really matter after all because they were more alike than different. Older readers understand immediately how brilliantly Dr. Seuss has illustrated the ridiculousness of racism and the harm it can cause Allegory Examples

The Tortoise and the Hare There once was a speedy hare who bragged about how fast he could run. Tired of hearing him boast, Slow and Steady, the tortoise, challenged him to a race. All the animals in the forest gathered to watch. Hare ran down the road for a while and then and paused to rest. He looked back at Slow and Steady and cried out, "How do you expect to win this race when you are walking along at your slow, slow pace?" Hare stretched himself out alongside the road and fell asleep, thinking, "There is plenty of time to relax." Slow and Steady walked and walked. He never, ever stopped until he came to the finish line. The animals who were watching cheered so loudly for Tortoise, they woke up Hare. Hare stretched and yawned and began to run again, but it was too late. Tortoise was over the line. After that, Hare always reminded himself, "Don't brag about your lightning pace, for Slow and Steady won the race!" Other Allegories:

The hidden meaning, or moral, here is that some people are born with natural talents but waste them to idleness or laziness. The tortoise's character is meant to show how despite natural talents, perseverance, hard work, and focus can win the day. Adults read this fable and see both the tortoise and hare as people they know in real life or have heard about. The race, read allegorically, is actually life itself. See the story for yourself below and try to read it allegorically. What’s the hidden meaning?

Create your own allegory Your school has a bullying problem, and your school administration isn't trying to fix it. Your principal, in fact, laughs when he sees students being bullied. You could write an allegory of his by creating a cast of animal characters like in Animal Farm. On a farm, the haughty stallions prance and tease the other animals. They dislike how the other animals are all smaller, weaker, and uglier than they are. So, they tease and torment them. The farmer enjoys this as the horses are hi s favorite. Think of your issue and plan an allegory for it. It is ok to write about a resolution to the issue in your allegory even if one hasn't been found in real life. Writing Assignment:

● Your allegory should be a complete narrative with a problem and solution told with a beginning, middle, and end. ● Your allegory should also include conflict of some kind (or more than one kind) ● Your story should include symbolic representations of people, places, and things from real life (i.e. a farm representing a school) ● Your story must be an allegory of a familiar social, political, or historical issue that people will recognize. ● Your story should have a moral lesson, deeper meaning or spirituality you aim to convey to your reader. ● Should be one page double-spaced (typed) Allegory Requirements

● Think of a current or past issue that is very troubling to you and make that the basis for your brainstorming ● Think of the setting you would like to place this issue in ● Think of characters that would best fit the setting Where to start: