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

Penthesilea
366
Penthesilea (penthbsileeb) A strong, commanding
woman. According to Greek mythology Penthesilea
was the daughter of Ares and the queen of
the amazons, whom she led to the aid of the Trojans
after the death of Hector. She died in combat
with Achilles, who lamented over the death of
such a good- looking, courageous woman. She is the
Penthesilea of the Demo cratic Party.
peony See paean.
Peoria See play in peoria.
Pepys (peeps) A diarist, especially one whose
diary present, a vivid and informative depiction
of his or her life and times. <strong>The</strong> allusion is to the
En glish diarist Samuel Pepys (1633–1703),
whose diary provides a uniquely colorful insight
into life in early Restoration London and an
invaluable record of such important historical
events as the Great Plague and the Fire of London.
Pepys eventually became concerned that the
hours he spent writing his diary were harming
his eyesight and so, after nine years (1660–69),
he abandoned it (although modern medical diagnosis
suggests he could have kept on writing it
without the least damage to his eyes). <strong>The</strong> lively
style of the diary, which covered his private life as
well as events of national importance, have maintained
to this day Pepys’s reputation as one of the
most celebrated En glishmen of his era and provided
a Pepysian standard beside which most
other diarists have since been mea sured. His not
infrequent way of ending a day’s entry, and so to
bed, has also entered the annals of familiar allusions.
As a diarist he noted down the chief events of his
time, but he lacked humor and was no Pepys.
Pequod See moby dick.
perestroika See glasnost.
perfi dious Albion (albeebn) Treacherous En -
gland. <strong>The</strong> name albion was applied to En gland as
early as the Romans, but it was the French who
labeled the country “perfi dious Albion,” in protest
against its per sis tent interference in Eu ro pe an
affairs. <strong>The</strong> phrase is usually attributed to the
French poet the marquis de Ximenès (1726–
1817), who used it in a poem in 1793, although it
was not until the early 19th century that the phrase
became widely familiar in Napoleon’s France,
when En glish interference played havoc with the
emperor’s territorial ambitions. “During the 19th
and 20th centuries, this came to be known as the
policy of the balance of power, and was principally
associated with perfi dious Albion” (William Cash,
Against a Federal Eu rope, 1991).
peri (peeree) A beautiful girl. In Persian mythology
a peri was a malevolent spirit who attacked
crops and caused eclipses, among other disastrous
acts. <strong>The</strong>y were subsequently depicted in the Qur’an
and elsewhere as gentle creatures resembling fairies.
“. . . and then, how delightfully refreshing is the
sight, when, perhaps, some ex- member, hurled
from his paradise like a fallen peri, reveals the secret
of that pure heaven” (Anthony Trollope, Doctor
Thorne, 1858).
Periclean (perikleebn) Wise; eloquent; honest.
<strong>The</strong> word refers to the respected Athenian statesman
and soldier Pericles (c. 500–429 b.c.), who
assumed the reins of power in 460 and oversaw a
golden era in Athenian democracy and the arts.
Important achievements under his leadership
included the building of the Parthenon. Typical of
the stories about his integrity, on his death it was
reported that he had not enriched himself beyond