Things to Watch for in a Well-Written Allegory Essay

Jake Shore reports:

"While it may appeal to some students to have complete freedom over [an] essay topic and subject matter, many students find comfort in clearly defined essay rules. An allegory is a symbolic representation, and an allegory essay offers students a clear central focus in addition to many freedoms...Whether you’re given a text to analyze or you’re able to choose one, the first step when writing an allegory essay is pinpointing the allegory that will be the central focus of your paper. When dealing with a text with an allegory, most narrative elements, central characters, settings and symbolic objects will be part of an overarching meaning that isn’t directly addressed in the narrative...At the foundation of a well-constructed allegory are carefully crafted parallels between two separate issues. To properly analyze an allegory it's important to identify these parallels and explain why the parallels are such strong indicators that an allegory exists...A well[-]constructed allegory is focused around a specific moral issue. What the moral issue is and how you know it is a significant part of an allegory essay. Analyze and interpret the fundamental conflict to identify what the text’s allegory is commenting on. The central conflict will reveal a moral conundrum having to deal with any number of issues such as death, innocence or righteousness...In a text with an allegory, central characters many times represent abstract ideas. For example, if the protagonist is a social worker, she may be a symbol of charity and generosity. These examples of personification often interact fundamentally with the allegory, and are integral in understanding the prominent parallels between the direct plot and the meaning that exists outside of the text."