Allusions

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Ivory Tower: " secluded or protected from the real world and thus out of touch with reality"- A French poet, Alfred de Vigny, was said to have shut himself in an ivory tower so that he could compose his poems. Furthermore, 'ivory towers' are mentioned in various 18th century fairy tales. The term thus refers to a beautiful, unreachable place.It has come to have negative connotations of being out of touch with reality.
Leaves and Fishes: "an almost miraculous abundance in the face of seeming scarcity."-When the people became hungry, all the food to be found was five loaves and two fish. Jesus had these brought to him and blessed the food. His disciples distributed bread and fish to the entire crowd, and there was still food left over after everyone had been fed.
Sound and Fury: "a great, tumultuous, and passionate uproar that actually is unimportant or meaningless."- Macbeth- When Macbeth is informed that his wife has died, he speaks of the inevitability of death: Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player, That struts and frets his hair upon the stage, And them is heard no more. It is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.
Mrs. Grundy: "an attitude of narrow-minded prudishness"- In Speed the Plough, Mrs. Grundy is a character who never appears on stage. However, other characters frequently ask, "What would Mrs. Grundy say?" Mrs. Grundy is a narrow-minded, conventional, prudish person.
Pearls before Swine: "offer something precious to someone or a group of people unable to appreciate the value of what they are being given."- In the Sermon of the Mount, Jesus admonished his followers to 'cast not your pearls before your swine". That is, followers were to deliver their message before those who would appreciate it, not to those incapable of appreciating something of value. Swine, or pigs, would be unable to appreciate pearls if the jewels were given to them.
Golden Calf: "an idol or any object that is worshiped even though its not worthy or worship"-while moses was receiving the 10 commandments, the people melt down their jewelery and ornaments and make a calf out of the gold. Then they began to worship this calf. Moses is angered when he returns to see the people worshiping an idol and he breaks the stone tablets.
All that Glitters is not Gold: "appears valuable on the outside, may in fact be less than valuable. Appearances can be deceptive."-This is a proverb derived from a Latin translation of Aristotle. The proverb read, "do not hold as gold all that shines as gold." In other words, just because something looks like gold, one should not assume that it actually is gold.
Thirty Pieces of Silver/Betrayed by a kiss: "payment received for an act of treachery"/"an act of treachery by a perceived friend"- In the Bible, Judas, Iscariot was the disciple who agreed to betray Jesus to the authorities in exchange for payment. The thirty pieces of silver were the price for Judas betrayal. The way Judas identified Jesus for the authorities was to approach Jesus and greet him with a kiss of identification.
Tantalas: "to be offered something desirable which is then withheld"-greek myth- Tantalus was a king who offended the gods and was condemned to suffer eternal hunger and thirst in Hades. he stood in water up to his chin, but when he bent to drink, the waters receded. Beautiful, ripe fruit hung overhead, but each time he reached for a piece, the wind blew out of his reach.
Sirens: "anything that tempts a person away from safety and toward a destructive path"-greek myth- Sirens were sea creatures who lured sailors to their deaths on th rocky shores by singing a beautiful, irresistible song. They are usually depicted as women, or as half-women, half bird.
Magnum Opus: "refers to the greatest work produced by an artist, writer, or composer."- this phrase is latin for "great work". Incidentally, the plural for opus is opera.
Bread and Circuses: "refers to govt policies designed to prevent unrest by keeping people happy and thus deflecting concern about troubling issues"-This phrase was used by a writer during the time of the Roman Empire. he deplored the fact that the imperial govt was able to keep the populace content merely by distributing free food and entertainment, such as the fights in the Colosseum between people or between people and animals. The writer declared it shameful that people could be so easily kept in line simply by receiving "bread and circuses" from the govt.
Achilles Heel: "area of vulnerability"- greek myth- when Achilles was a baby, his mom dipped him in the River Styx because the waters from this river gave him immortality to humans. His mom held him by his heel, do that was the only place on his body not touched by the water. Achilles was killed during the Trojan war when a poisoned arrow struck his heel.
Pound of Flesh: "insistence on being repaid, even if the repayment will destroy or harm the debtor."-Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice- In this play, Shylock, a moneylender, agrees to finance a fleet of ships for a young merchant, Antonio. In the contract, Shylock demands a pound of Antonio's flesh as payment should anything happen to the ships. When the ships are lost at sea, Shylock insists that he must have a pound of flesh, as the contract demanded. Antonio is spared only because of a technicality: the contract did not say Shylock was entitled to any of Antonio's blood. Thus he cannot take a pound of flesh unless he can do so bloodlessly, an impossibility.
Fiddle While Rome Burns: "to display indifference in the midst of disaster"
In Media Res: "anything that begins abruptly, in the middle of the action, or the middle of things"- one of the standard epic conventions is that the epic begins in the middle of the action.
Tabula Rasa: "the idea that something or someone is entirely unmarked and uninfluenced"- this phrase from latin means "blank slate." The philosopher John Locke referred to the mind of a young person unaffected by experience as a tabula rasa.
Crocodile Tears: "to show false sympathy for someone"- Crocodiles were once thought to shed large tears before devouring their prey. This belief, which dates to ancient times, comes from the fact that crocodiles have small ducts in the corners of their eyes which release "tears" when the crocodile opens its jaws wide. Obviously, a cold-blooded reptile has no real feelings of sympathy for its prey.
Svengali: "a person who exercises excessive control or influence over another person"-Svengali is a singing master who teaches Trilby to sing. He exercises complete control over her, and when he dies, Trilby is no longer able to sing.
Sacred Cow: "something that cannot be interfered with or harmed in any way"- In Hinduism, cows are considered to be sacred, thus cows are not to be harmed and certainly not to be killed for food. If a cow wanders into a shop, a merchant can only try to lure it out with food. he is not allowed to interfere with it by prodding or poking, even if it is breaking everything in his shop.
White elephant: "an object that has no use to its owner and may even represent a financial burden or an inconvenience"
Nimby: "refers to the idea that, while people may be aware of the necessity of some unpleasant realities, such as prisons, landfills, or chemical plants, they insist theses place be located away from where they live"- NOT IN MY BACK YARD
Crossing the Rubicon: "to take an irreversible step, often involving some danger"- After defeating the Gauls in the Gallic wars, Julius Caesar was ordered home by his enemies in the senate in Rome, so he traveled south toward Italy. The Rubicon was the river forming the northern boundary of Italy. By Roman law, a general was forbidden from crossing into Italy with an army. Nevertheless, Caesar led his army across the river, making civil war inevitable. After Caesar crossed the Rubicon, there was no turning back for him and his troops.
The Emperor's New Clothes: "often used in the context of someone, like a small child, pointing out the falseness or pretentiousness of something, especially when others are afraid to admit the truth."- An emperor hires 2 tailors who promise to make him a new set of clothes. These clothes are unique because they are invisible to a person who is stupid or unfit for office.When the two swindlers 'show' the emperor his new clothes, he cant see them, but he pretends to admire them, fearing he will be seen as unfit for office. The emperor 'wears' the new clothes on a grand parade and no one will admit he cannot see the new clothes. Finally, a small child shouts out the truth that the emperor is, in fact, naked.
Janus: "can refer to wisdom and understanding of a person who sees everything OR it can refer to the 'two-faced' nature of someone who presents two different appearances. It represents 'duality'"- Janus is the Roman God of gates and doorways. Thus he was associated with entrances and beginnings. Out month of January is named fro Janus. He was usually depicted with two faces, one looking forward into the future, the other looking back at the past.
Deus ex machina: "any surprising turn of events that suddenly makes things turn out right, especially in a literary work. This device is often considered to be an unsatisfying and overly convenient way to end a story."- the phrase literally means "god from a mechane". In the classical greek theater, the mechane was a crane with a harness for an actor. The actor would be lowered from the ceiling and appear to be flying. In many classical plays, a god would unexpectedly appear, flying to earth to solve a seemingly hopeless problem or save the hero or heroine.
Read the Riot Act: "to issue a stern warning that is unacceptable behavior does not cease, severe consequences will follow."- Under English Common Law, an unruly crowd had to be read the riot at before action could be taken, to force them to disperse.
Waterloo: "to suffer an ultimate, decisive defeat"- In 1815, the Battle of Waterloo was fought near the village of Waterloo, which is now in Belgium. This was the final battle in the Napoleonic wars, the battle in which Napoleon Bonaparte was finally defeated.
Sword of Damocles: "an awareness of impending or imminent danger"-
Non Sequitur: "it does not follow"
Left-handed compliment: "despite being a compliment, its insulting or rude in some way."- in language, the left hand is often associated with something negative.
Once in a Blue Moon: "something that occurs very rarely"- A 'blue moon' is a second moon within the same calendar month, a phenomenon that occurs approximately every three years. It is thought that calendar makers traditionally pictured the first full moon in red and a second moon in the same month in blue.
Gordian Knot: "an extremely complex problem". -Alexander the Great "untied" the knot simply by cutting through it with his sword.
Icarus/ Fly too Close to the Sun: "to fail or be destroyed because of lack or caution or excessive ambition."-greek myth- Icarus and his father, Daedalus, escaped from the island of Crete by means of wings constructed by Daedalus. The wings were held together by wax, and although Daedalus had warned Icarus not to fly too close to the sun, Icarus did not heed the warning. The wax melted and he fell to his death in the Aegean Sea.

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Number of cards 34