The Facts on File Dictionary of Allusions - Green Valley High School

Vanderbilt
488
and sacked Rome in 455, causing widespread
destruction to great works of art and buildings.
<strong>The</strong> Vandals were especially notorious for looting
and laying waste the lands that fell into their hands.
“Though she did think that Uncle Tom had been
worse than any vandal in that matter of selling her
lover’s magnifi cent works, still she was ready to
tell of his generosity” (Anthony Trollope, Ayala’s
Angel, 1881).
Vanderbilt (vanderbilt) A very wealthy person,
a tycoon. Cornelius Vanderbilt (1794–1877) established
his family’s fortune in the railroad and shipping
businesses. He went on to use much of his vast
wealth for charitable purposes. You’d think he was a
Vanderbilt the way he has been throwing his money
around.
van Gogh (van go) A talented artist, especially
one who is mentally anguished. Dutch artist Vincent
van Gogh (1853–90) suffered from depression
that was intensifi ed by lack of recognition as an
artist during his own lifetime, which ended with
his suicide at the age of 37. He has since been
hailed as a leader of the Postimpressionists and as
one of the world’s greatest artists of all time. His
paintings sell pretty well but let’s face it, he’s no van
Gogh.
Vanity Fair A town or other place that is notable
for corruption and vice, or the world of men, with
all its follies and lusts, generally. <strong>The</strong> phrase comes
from pilgrim’s progress (1678, 1684) by John
Bunyan (1628–88), in which Vanity Fair is the
name given to a fair held in the town of Vanity, the
attractions of which include all manner of vice and
sin. <strong>The</strong> phrase is best known today as the title of a
novel by William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–
63), published 1847–48, in which he similarly
satirizes the follies of contemporary society. He
feared that if his daughters were set loose in the world
they would soon fall prey to the temptations of Vanity Fair.
vanity of vanities An act or belief that is considered
entirely futile. <strong>The</strong> word vanity today generally
signifi es personal pride or conceit, but in its
original biblical context the word suggested rather
the notions of meaninglessness, emptiness, futility,
or idolatry. <strong>The</strong> word appears many times in
the Bible, notably in Ecclesiastes 1:2: “Vanity of
vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is
vanity.” <strong>The</strong> phrase is sometimes rendered in
Latin as vanitas vanitatum or in another quotation
from the same verse as all is vanity. “Oh how
vain it is, the vanity of vanities, to live in men’s
thoughts instead of God’s!” (Lytton Strachey, Eminent
Victorians, 1918).
Van Winkle, Rip See rip van winkle.
veil of Isis See lift the veil of isis.
veil of the temple rent A revelation or a moment
of revelation. <strong>The</strong> image of a torn veil as a symbol
of revelation is biblical in origin, referring to the
moment of Christ’s death on the cross, when
“behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain
from the top to the bottom” (Matthew 27:51).
(See also Mark 15:38, Luke 23:45, and Hebrews
6:19–20, 9:6–9, and 10:19–20.) <strong>The</strong> veil in question
was the curtain in the Temple at Jerusalem
that separated the Holy Place from the holy of
holies (the innermost room of the tabernacle)
(see Exodus 26:31). “<strong>The</strong> fact that the curtain prevented
ordinary worshipers from entering the
‘Most Holy Place’ came to be seen as pointing to
the much deeper separation between God and sinful
humanity. <strong>The</strong> curtain thus came to be a symbol