Allusion In Morris Bishop's Poem Phaethon

In Morris Bishop’s poem “Phaethon”, the speaker focuses on the topic of responsibility; using humorous language to relay the message to the reader. With literary allusion, the speaker draws parallels between the past and the present, the old and the new, mythology and reality. Throughout the poem the rhythm and rhyme are reflective of children’s nursery rhymes. This establishes the light and humorous tone best suited to a younger audience, instituting the speaker’s position as a father to a young child. In the poem “Phaethon”, the speaker is trying to dissuade his young son from taking on the responsibilities of an adult before he is ready by telling him the myth of Phaethon and Apollo- creating a humorous lecture through tone, imagery, allusion,

Allusion is defined as a figure of speech that alludes to popular, or well-known literature, event, setting, or person. (Jason Lineberger, Allusion in Literature) In ancient Greek mythology, Phaethon was the demigod son of Apollo who took on more responsibility than he was ready for-eventually forging his own downfall. Within the piece, the speaker tells his son the story of Apollo and Phaethon, tying ancient mythology to the present day. Similar to the way Phaethon believed he held the responsibility to drive the sun chariot in the archaic myths, the speaker’s son boasts the same mindset- believing he could drive the car; however, the speaker believes his son will follow the same path as Phaethon and fail in his attempts to drive the car. To illustrate this idea, the speaker begins by introducing Apollo and Phaethon’s parent-child relationship: “Apollo through the heavens rode/ In glinting gold attire/… His darling son was Phaethon, / Who begged to have a try.” (Lines 1, 2, 7, 8) The father, is the one in charge, carrying more responsibility and has to “… [hold the horses] to their frantic course” (line 5). Subsequently, the son is the one who wishes to carry more responsibility than