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

light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a
candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in
the house” (Matthew 5:14–15). A bushel is a unit
of mea sure ment traditionally gauged by using a
wooden or earthenware container, thus, to be
under a bushel signifi ed being hidden from view.
“Now did the Reverend Samuel Pentecost, whose
light had hitherto been hidden under a bushel,
prove at last that he could do something by proving
that he could eat” (Wilkie Collins, Armadale,
1866).
Hieronymus Bosch (hbronbmbs bosh) Of a bizarre,
nightmarish character. <strong>The</strong> allusion is to the extraordinary
paintings of Dutch artist Hieronymus
Bosch (c. 1453–1516), whose works often
depicted the torments of damned souls in hell.
Even today his grotesque visions of weird animals
and demons provoke fascination and astonishment.
Each night he descended into a dreamworld that seemed
to have been designed by Hieronymus Bosch.
higher than Gilderoy’s kite (gildbroi) Punished
more severely than anyone else. <strong>The</strong> allusion is to a
Scottish highwayman called Gilderoy, who was
said to have been hanged higher than other criminals
to refl ect the seriousness of his crimes. “She
squandered millions of francs on a navy which she
did not need, and the fi rst time she took her new
toy into action she got it knocked higher than
Gilderoy’s kite—to use the language of the Pilgrims”
(Mark Twain, Innocents Abroad, 1869).
High Noon A climactic test or confrontation.
<strong>The</strong> allusion is to the 1952 Western movie of the
same title, in which a small- town marshal played
by Gary Cooper ventures out to fi ght a deadly gun
battle with four outlaws arriving on the noon
train. <strong>The</strong> fi lm in its turn was based on the short
story “<strong>The</strong> Tin Star” (1947) by John W. Cunningham.
“<strong>The</strong> auction ring of Ayr cattle market on
14th December, 1911, was arranged for the ‘high
noon’ of the dispute” (Andrew Boyle, Ayrshire Heritage,
1990). Somewhat confusingly, drawing on
the image of the sun being at its zenith at noon and
entirely ignoring the subtext provided by the classic
fi lm, the phrase may also be used to describe a
time when things are at their most fl ourishing:
“For all that, the Thatcher high noon seemed to
show the balance between state power and individual
self- expression, in some key episodes, tilting
against the individual or the dissenting
minority” (Kenneth Morgan, <strong>The</strong> People’s Peace,
1990).
hind of Arcadia See labors of hercules.
hip and thigh, smite them See smite them hip
and thigh.
hippie A person who favors a relaxed, tolerant,
and peace- loving attitude to life in preference to
the hardheaded realities of the world around him
or her. <strong>The</strong> original hippies emerged during the
late 1960s, when a whole generation identifi ed
itself with antiestablishment ideas and indulged
freely in rock music, drugs, and colorful fashions.
<strong>The</strong> word itself probably had its roots in the slang
“hip,” meaning “fashionable.” <strong>The</strong> term, often in
the derogatory phrase long- haired hippie, has
since been applied more widely to anyone who is
suspected of a dreamy, idealistic view of life or of
espousing in some way the ideals of the hippie era.
“Perdita, however, was deeply embarrassed to see
her mother arriving in unsuitably colourful clothes
and dripping wet hair, like a superannuated hippie”
(Jilly Cooper, Polo, 1991). See also fl ower child;
woodstock.
hippie
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