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

Krakatoa (krakbtob) A volcanic eruption or a
similarly destructive explosion or outburst of
some kind. <strong>The</strong> volcanic island of Krakatoa in
Indonesia erupted with devastating power in
1883, resulting in the destruction of most of the
island itself and widespread damage and loss of
life. <strong>The</strong> island has since reformed as pressure
builds up below for a future eruption. <strong>The</strong> scandal
erupted like Krakatoa, prompting many leading fi gures
to run for cover.
Kramer vs. Kramer (kraymbr) Archetype of a
painful, legally protracted divorce. <strong>The</strong> allusion is
to the 1979 movie Kramer vs. Kramer, which starred
Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep as a divorcing
couple fi ghting over the custody of their son. <strong>The</strong>y
had hoped they could disentangle their lives without
their divorce becoming Kramer vs. Kramer, but this
proved impossible.
K-ration A meal consisting of basic or emergency
foodstuffs. <strong>The</strong> fi rst K-rations were those
provided to U.S. soldiers fi ghting in World War II.
<strong>The</strong>y were named after the U.S. physiologist
Ancel B. Keys (1904–2004) who devised them.
We were on K-rations for ten days until supplies could be
fl own out to our base camp.
Kristallnacht (kristalnakt) An outburst of mob
violence against a par tic u lar section of society. <strong>The</strong>
allusion is to the original Kristallnacht (German for
“night of glass”) that took place during the night of
November 9–10, 1938. German Brownshirts led
mobs against Jewish shops and houses in many
German towns and cities, breaking windows as
well as looting and then setting fi re to the premises.
Many Jews fl ed Germany in the wake of the outrages,
which had led to the deaths of over 300 Jews
and the destruction of hundreds of synagogues.
Today the term is often used not so much with reference
to the violence committed during the original
Kristallnacht but in horror at the subsequent
lack of protest by the rest of the world at the events
that had taken place. <strong>The</strong> authorities are worried that
this might prove to be a Kristallnacht leading to much
worse victimization of the Kurdish minority. See also
holocaust.
Kronos See cronos.
Krueger, Freddy See nightmare on elm street.
Ku Klux Klan
kryptonite (kriptonit) Something that may have
a powerfully negative effect on something else.
<strong>The</strong> fi ctitious green- colored substance kryptonite,
from the equally fi ctitious planet Krypton, is identifi
ed as the one thing that can deprive the comicstrip
and movie hero superman of his superhuman
powers. In November 2006 it was announced that
a chemical substance with a remarkably similar
formula to that of the fi ctitious kryptonite (though
white, not green in color) had been discovered in
drill holes made in Serbia, leading to suggestions
that the new substance be called kryptonite in
Superman’s honor (though it is properly identifi ed
as jadarite). Magnolia paint is like kryptonite to most
contemporary interior designers.
Ku Klux Klan (koo kluks klan) A secret society
based on racist bigotry. <strong>The</strong> Ku Klux Klan was
formed by white supremacists in Tennessee in
1865 following the abolition of slavery at the end
of the Civil War and its infl uence quickly spread
throughout the Confederate southern states. Klan
members disguised their identity with long white
robes and hoods and terrorized their black neighbors,
who were threatened, beaten up, and even
lynched. Other victims included the Catholic and
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