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

productions. In modern usage, the name is often
applied more generally to the theatrical world as a
whole. Broadway itself, otherwise known as the
great white way, is a street that runs through the
West Side of Manhattan. She dreamed of making a
name for herself in Broadway musicals.
Brobdingnagian (brobdingnageebn) On a vast,
gigantic scale. <strong>The</strong> land of Brobdingnag, in which
all the inhabitants are 60 feet tall, is one of the
places visited by Lemuel gulliver in Jonathan
Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels (1726). It has been suggested
that the name came about as an anagram of
“grand big nob(le).” “Death or injury lies in wait
for the imprudent in Brobdingnagian chasms
below” (Eric G. Holland, Coniston Copper, 1986).
See also laputa; lilliputian; yahoo.
Brodie, Miss Jean See miss jean brodie.
broken reed A weak or damaged person or thing.
<strong>The</strong> phrase is biblical in origin. In Isaiah 36:6 King
Hezekiah is advised not to trust the Egyptians: “Lo,
thou trustest in the staff of this broken reed, on
Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his
hand, and pierce it.” In Matthew 12:20 Christ
echoes this passage in his words “A bruised reed
shall he not break.” “ ‘God help thee, my son! He
can help when worldly trust is a broken reed.’—
Such was the welcome of the matron to her unfortunate
grandson” (Sir Walter Scott, <strong>The</strong> Black Dwarf,
1816).
Bronx cheer (bronks) A “raspberry,” a derisive
noise made with the tongue and lips. <strong>The</strong> Bronx
district of New York is one of the rougher areas of
the city, long notorious for the vulgar behavior of
its inhabitants. <strong>The</strong> only response to my request was a
Bronx cheer from one of the teenagers.
Brothers Grimm See grimm’s fairy tales.
brother’s keeper See my brother’s keeper.
Brown, John See john brown.
Bruce, Robert See robert the bruce.
Bruce Wayne See batman and robin.
bruised reed See broken reed.
Brummell, Beau See beau brummell.
Brute See et tu, brute?
Buckingham Palace
Bucephalus (byoosefblbs) Archetype of a noble,
courageous horse. Bucephalus was the name of the
horse that Alexander the Great rode in the course
of his celebrated military campaigns. Legend has it
that only Alexander proved capable of breaking
the horse, whose name—from bous, meaning “ox,”
and kephale, meaning “head”—referred to its
resemblance to a bull. “Close- reefi ng top- sails in a
gale, there he was, astride the weather yard- armend,
foot in the Flemish horse as ‘stirrup,’ both
hands tugging at the ‘earring’ as at a bridle, in very
much the attitude of young Alexander curbing the
fi ery Bucephalus” (Herman Melville, Billy Budd,
1924).
Buckingham Palace (bbkingbm) A large and
magnifi cent home. Buckingham Palace in London
is the offi cial residence of the British monarchy. It
was named after the fi rst duke of Buckingham,
who built the original palace in 1703, and became
a royal residence when bought by George III in
1762. In modern usage, homes may be compared
with Buckingham Palace ironically to highlight
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