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Allusion in The City in the Sea

Allusion Examples in The City in the Sea:

Text of the Poem

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"Hell..."   (Text of the Poem)

Poe alludes to hell, where Christians believe the fallen angel Satan rules over the souls of unrepentant sinners. Many beliefs about hell, including its location and its qualities, exist across Christian denominations. Poe suggests that hell resides somewhere within the Earth, given that the city sinks downward and a fiery red hell rises up to meet it. The glowing redness of Poe’s hell is consistent with depictions found in the Bible, in which hell is described as an “eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41–43).

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"the filmy Heaven...."   (Text of the Poem)

Poe alludes to heaven, a physical location where God and his angels are believed to reside. Most Christian denominations believe that righteous people are rewarded with the honor of spending eternity in heaven after they die, while sinful people are condemned to suffer for eternity in hell.

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