He added, though, that "democracies have their own particular timetables," an apparent allusion to the national interests that critics say prevented a quick and coordinated response.
Unobtrusively placed in the current of a discussion on a particular issue, the anecdotal allusions serve to clarify an idea, to provide a concrete example, or to insert a playful turn of phrase into otherwise ponderous prose.
The Supremes hit "I Hear a Symphony," in particular, was embellished with classical allusions.
Similarly, Diane Johnson wrote in the New York Times of Lila: "Very few allusions link life in Gilead to particular historical events, though a character once mentions that he might vote for Eisenhower.
The age of the camp persona, the biting comment, the ironic allusion is not passing, exactly, but it is moving towards a particular section of a particular gay community at a particular point in time.
He was well read, the Bible and Shakespeare in particular, but did not lace his speeches with classical allusions, as his contemporaries William Gladstone and Benjamin Disraeli did.
But what is most notable is how clotted the poems are with references, untranslated fragments from different languages, and classical allusions (Horace and Virgil seem to be particular favorites); the assemblage, unlike in his later work, can seem hectic.
In a plot incorporating visual allusions to 1960s spy thriller films, in particular the James Bond film franchise, "30 Minutes After Noon" sees the Tracy family attempt to rescue a British secret agent embroiled in the latest scheme of the Erdman Gang, a powerful crime syndicate.
In a speech that was clearly intended to show particular sensitivity to its audience, Mr. Bloomberg opened with an allusion to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, to suggest that gun violence remained a barrier to full racial equality.
