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

grand slam
200
Robertson; 1860–1961) was a self- taught artist
who became famous at the advanced age of 80 for
her nostalgic paintings executed in a characteristic
naive, primitive style. <strong>The</strong> fabrics on sale in the store
had a rustic, Grandma Moses charm.
grand slam <strong>The</strong> attaining of victory in every
challenge contested. <strong>The</strong> expression comes from
the game of bridge, in which a grand slam refers
to the bidding and winning of all 13 tricks in a
single game. <strong>The</strong> term is particularly associated
today with the sporting world and is commonly
used of the achievements of teams or individuals
who win all the major events in their par tic u lar
sport, such as tennis, golf, rugby, or soccer. Victory
for the team here today would complete a grand slam in
all the trophy competitions at this level.
Grant, Cary See cary grant.
grassy knoll A source of perplexity or suspicion,
especially one suggesting some hidden mystery or
offi cial cover- up. <strong>The</strong> allusion is to the assassination
of President John F. Kennedy (1917–63) in
Dallas on November 22, 1963 and the conspiracy
theories that developed over the years. One of
these suggests that he was killed not by Lee Harvey
Oswald fi ring from the Texas School Book
Depository but by a second unidentifi ed assailant
fi ring from a grassy knoll overlooking the presidential
route. <strong>The</strong> episode has turned into something of
a grassy knoll, giving conspiracy theorists scope to suggest
there may be more to the story than the government
are admitting.
graven image A statue or other object that is
worshiped as a god or idol. <strong>The</strong> phrase appears
several times in the Bible but is best known from
the second of the Ten Commandments: “Thou
shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any
likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or
that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water
under the earth” (Exodus 20:4). “ ‘Still, he who
would do justice,’ she proceeded, ‘will not forget
that the cunning of our hands was bound by the
prohibition, “Thou shalt not make unto thee any
graven image, or any likeness of anything”; which
the Sopherim wickedly extended beyond its purpose
and time’ ” (Lew Wallace, Ben Hur, 1880).
Grave, where is thy victory? See death, where is
thy sting?
Gray, Dorian See dorian gray.
gray eminence See éminence grise.
greasy pole <strong>The</strong> path to promotion or success.
<strong>The</strong> allusion is to a pop u lar sport dating back to
the 19th century, in which two contestants
mounted greased horizontal poles and attempted
to knock each other off using pillows or other
weapons. <strong>The</strong> modern allusive usage of the term,
however, suggests that it is a vertical (not horizontal)
pole up which people ascend with diffi culty,
or with the ever- present danger of slipping down
again. “A friend of the Prince’s youth, Benjamin
Disraeli, was to explain with less elegance the reason
for his own arrival in power: ‘I have climbed to
the top of the greasy pole’ ” (William H. C. Smith,
Napoleon III, 1991).
Great Depression A period of prolonged economic
gloom. <strong>The</strong> phrase is usually associated with
the long- lasting economic depression that was
triggered by the Wall Street Crash of 1929 (see
wall street), although it is sometimes applied to
other similar periods or, more generally, to any