“What is an Allegory?“: A Literary Guide for English Students and Teachers

What is the definition of allegory? What are some examples of allegories and how to they presuppose certain reading practices? Professor Tekla Bude answers these questions using examples from the movie Inside Out, Hieronymous Bosch’s Ship of Fools, and everyday life. The short video is designed to help high school and college English students to not only identify allegory in literature, film, and visual art but also to analyze its purposes and effects. The video is sponsored by the School of Writing, Literature, and Film at Oregon State University. For more discussions of literary topics and essay writing tips, please subscribe to the free SWLF YouTube Channel or visit This video now includes both Spanish and English subtitles. To switch between languages, please click on the settings in the video. Below are a few more videos in the series. Please drop us a comment letting us know what literary terms you would like us to explore in future videos! “What is a prol