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Allegory as genre (The Tate)
Allegory in art is when the subject of the artwork, or the various elements that form the composition, is used to symbolize a deeper moral or spiritual meaning such as life, death, love, virtue, justice etc.
Allegory as genre (EBSCO)
An allegory is a literary device in which abstract ideas and values are represented as characters, objects, or events. It is typically a fictional story that offers a moral in order to teach and explain an abstract principle or idea, such as a fable or a parable. Allegory appears in prose, poetry, rhetoric, and visual arts.
According to some definitions, an allegory is a type of extended metaphor. Allegories exist on two planes: the literal, or what the figure does in the story, and the symbolic, or what the figure stands for.
The word “allegory” comes from the Greek meaning to speaking figuratively.
In Medieval Europe, examples of the allegorical tradition are Edmund Spenser’s The Faerie Queene (poetry) as well as the works of Geoffrey Chaucer (Canterbury Tales), and Giovanni Boccaccio (Decameron), among others. The latter two use frame stories to tell a sequence of individual stories.
Animal Farm, George Orwell, is a more modern example. (McCarthyism, Communism, and the Russian Revolution)
Cast of characters—Theo
Although known to the townspeople of Golden only as Theo, he is really Gamez Theophilus Zilavez, or “Zila.”
At the beginning of the story, Theo is an elderly Portuguese gentleman who arrives from New York city in Golden, Georgia, just before Easter. He's a quiet gentleman, unassuming, a bit mysterious, who keeps his identity hidden; he tells people just to call him Theo. He's attuned to nature, particularly water, although he also knows birds, plants, trees, and flowers.
While taking a morning stroll just after he arrives, he goes into a coffee shop, The Chalice, to order an espresso, and notices the 92 pencil portraits on the wall, all drawn by Asher Glissen. He meets the barista, and owner, Shep. He buys the portrait of a young woman with short hair and an unsmiling face for $125, because that portrait "intrigues him the most."
The subject is Minette Prentiss, a local CPA. He composes a thoughtful letter, explaining that he would like to give her the portrait as a gift since it rightfully belongs to her. He proposes meeting at the fountain near the Chalice, where he will be wearing a heather green flat cap so that Minette can identify him. Minette shows the letter to her husband Derrick, a prosecutor, and calls her uncle Asher to decide if the meeting is safe.
Cast of characters—Theo
During her conversation with Theo, Minette confesses that during college, she became pregnant but terminated the pregnancy at her father’s insistence despite her desire to keep the baby. The sadness Theo detected in her portrait stems from this decision and from the ongoing conflict between her desire to be a mother and her current career path. Minette's father is Pearce Glissen, Asher's brother, an unsavory character we meet at the Thanksgiving dinner.
While exploring the Boughery district, Theo also drops into the Verbivore bookshop and meets the owner, Tony. Theo asks for a book about Golden’s history, and Tony offers to sell him an inexpensive volume written by a former newspaper reporter.
The two men develop an immediate rapport, with Theo comparing the Verbivore to bookshops in Scotland and Paris. Tony is a war veteran with strong opinions. Learning that Theo is looking for an apartment, Tony suggests Ponder House. Theo also meets music student Simone, a cellist, and a genial group of retired men who regularly gather outside the bookshop and call themselves the “Penny Loafers.”
Cast of characters—Theo
After all the other stories, Theo's past is finally revealed after his death.
Decades before, Theo and Asher's mother fell in love while studying art together in Madrid. When she discovered she was pregnant, she returned to Golden and quickly married another man, her longtime sweetheart, to avoid scandal. She wrote to Theo to inform him of the pregnancy and asked him never to contact her again. Theo respected her wishes and stayed away, but he always knew about Asher. This revelation also explains the artistic, intuitive connection between Theo and Asher.
Years later, Theo’s wife and daughter died in a car accident. His wife, who struggled with alcohol addiction, was driving while intoxicated when the crash occurred. Their 10-year-old daughter, Tita, was killed alongside her mother. The tragic loss of his daughter stayed with Theo as he tried to isolate himself. He also adopted rituals, such as watching sunsets by a river in whatever place he lived, to remember his wife and daughter. Like all the other characters in this novel, Theo has known sadness and grief, but without those you also can't know happiness.
Cast of characters—James Ponder
He is Theo's landlord and consultant who has a highly ordered approach to life and business. He is fastidious in all things, especially his professional relationships. Initially skeptical about renting his apartment to Theo, Ponder learns some details about Theo’s past, including that Theo was once a client of his father, and soon decides to trust him. The two begin a firm friendship after Theo reveals his true identity.
As a consultant to Golden’s wealthy families, Ponder values confidentiality and propriety above almost all else, and he is an ideal partner in Theo’s unconventional portrait bestowals. Although he knows who Theo is, he remains quiet, staying discrete and at a careful distance.
Theo is glad to have “someone with whom he could be unguarded, someone with whom he could speak freely about his past” (226). Their conversations are more open and honest than most others.
By the novel’s conclusion, Ponder has become more than Theo’s business associate; he is ultimately the guardian of the Theo's artist’s legacy. In the epilogue, he plays a role in connecting Ellen with her daughter Willa.
Cast of characters—Anita Gidley
She is James Ponder’s long-serving secretary, initially characterized as suspicious of newcomers and as rigidly and reserved as her employer.
However, as she becomes increasingly involved in Theo’s portrait gifts, her attitude and behavior gradually shifts, and she develops “a noticeable new enthusiasm about her work” (228).
When she delivers Christmas gifts on Theo’s behalf, she understands the joy of kindness and becomes more open to relationships with others.
Cast of characters—Asher Glissen
Asher is the talented portrait artist whose work forms the catalyst for Theo’s gifts. He creates images that capture the essence of his subjects, not just their surface appearance. He captures their sadness, their dreams, their ambitions, although he doesn't know that until Theo tells him. His artistic sensitivity means that he depicts the subtle underlying emotions that make his subjects authentic.
As Theo observes, “in every face I detect sadness . . . it is like a weariness or an unmet longing . . . something we inherit from those who lived before us.” (223). Asher’s ability to convey universal human experience through individual portraits makes his work unique.
Despite his considerable talent, Asher maintains a humble perspective; he doubts the value of his art when the portraits remain unsold. As we discover, he's the counterpoint to his success-driven brother Pearce.
Cast of characters—Tony Wilcox
Tony, the apparently cynical owner of the Verbivore bookshop, adds a comedic element with his pleas to buy a book because he's going out of business any minute. But, as we discover, he's also an example of how trauma shapes identity.
He's a Vietnam veteran haunted by memories of war, particularly his accidental killing of a young boy. To cover his guilt and deep emotional wounds, he's developed a gruff, sarcastic exterior. Despite this, Tony has compassion and empathy for his fellow community members. He allows Ellen to borrow books after the library revokes her card. At his core, he is kind and his discussions with Theo suggest that he wants to believe in goodness despite evidence in his life to the contrary.
When he tells Theo about accidentally killing a Vietnamese child running toward him, he says:
“As bad as the guilt and shame and nightmares have been, in some way they give me hope that I still have a conscience and a heart, even if they’re screwed all to hell up. I hope so” (198). As his friendship with Theo develops, he slowly begins to heal from his old wounds.
Cast of characters—Minette Prentiss
The first recipient of Theo’s portrait gifts, she's a successful accountant whose career was largely determined by her demanding father. Minette has not pursued her own goals but has directed her life by her father's expectations. Although professionally successful, she regrets terminating the pregnancy during college to please her father.
During his meeting with Minnette, Theo tells her,
“This face belongs to one who is strong and brave and kind. It belongs to one who is capable of saintliness” (51). It gives her the courage to pursue her own goals and at the end of the novel, she and her husband have a son whom they name Theo.
One of the things Theo does in his conversations with portrait recipients is point out the virtues and qualities they possess that they don't realize themselves. He frequently tells them they are capable of "saintliness."
Cast of characters—Derrick Prentiss
Minette's husband is Derrick Prentiss, a prosecutor, who represents the perspective of justice and the legal system in this novel, and that shapes his treatment of individuals. Initially he is cautious and careful (he accompanies Minette to her meeting with Theo).
But his relationship with Mateo Mendez and Kendrick Whitaker challenges him to reconsider his perspective on justice, fairness, and empathy. He begins to truly see people as individuals rather than labels.
Mateo is the Guatemalan man who returned to the US illegally to care for his daughter Maria who has cancer and needs medical treatment. Exhausted from the trip, he fell asleep at the wheel and caused an accident that injured Kendrick's daughter Lamisha and killed his wife.
As a prosecutor, Derrick initially approaches the case conventionally, focusing on legal guilt and punishment. However, through his interactions with Kendrick Whitaker—who advocates for mercy after seeing Mateo as a fellow father and human being—Derrick is prompted to reconsider his own perspective. Thanks to the compassion shown by Kendrick and others, Mateo receives a plea agreement that allows him to be released from jail, though he still faces possible deportation.
Cast of characters—Ellen
Ellen is one of the novel's more complex characters. She's an unhoused (not homeless) woman whose scattered thoughts and random comments actually mask intelligence and education. As a character, she therefore challenges the stereotypes about mental illness.
Ellen clearly has extensive literary knowledge, she quotes well-known texts, and she has acute observational skills as her bicycle ride (the Noble invention) with Theo demonstrate. She's also created “featherwood” (carefully arranged feathers embedded in holes drilled into driftwood). Note the symbol on the title page of this novel.
Despite the chaos of her thoughts, Ellen can correct Theo’s grammar in his letter to her, saying, “The subject and the verb in that sentence don’t agree . . . I don’t mean to be rude, but we try to use correct grammar” (148).
Cast of characters—Ellen
When Theo asks about her happiest day, she recounts giving birth to her daughter Willa, from whom she was immediately separated. As she admits, “That was the worst thing I ever had to live through. But it was the happiest day of my life” (161). Ellen’s traumatic past, which involves psychiatric institutions, lack of housing, and the loss of her child, has left her with significant psychological scars, yet she maintains her humanity through small acts of creativity and connection.
At the end, Ellen is reunited with Willa.
Allen paints a beautiful word picture when he says, “And so feathers, this idea of lost things being found . . . she was a lost thing who in a sense was found by this man’s kindness. "
Cast of characters—Kendrick Whitaker
Kendrick is the university custodian wrongfully incarcerated before the novel begins. Initially cautious and mistrustful of Theo’s gift, Kendrick becomes one of the story’s most compassionate figures. His love for his daughter Lamisha, severely injured in an accident that killed her mother, compels him to work grueling night-shift hours so that he can care for her during the day.
When Theo first meets Kendrick, he calls him a “strong man” with “worry and some hurt in the eyes,” but also “kindness” (94). This recognition provides Kendrick with the respect and dignity often denied him in his daily life.
When he hears Mr. Mendez's story, the man whose driving accident injured Lamisha and killed her mother, Kendrick advocates for mercy instead of seeking vengeance, recognizing their shared humanity as fathers who would do anything for their daughters. His actions show that when people recognize their shared humanity, they can transcend barriers of race, class, and circumstance.
Cast of characters—Simone Lavoie
Simone is a passionate and talented cellist studying at Golden University. Of mixed Samoan and Congolese heritage, he has a relationship with his instrument, carrying it around on his back despite Tony’s teasing that he looks like he has “a damn hockey player on [his] back” (60).
During the recital, Simone demonstrates his musical talent and passion. He's described as “a force of nature. Electrified. Ravished and ravishing” (336).
As a patron of the musical arts, Theo helps Simone, giving him an expensive Emil Werner bow and saying “There are songs in this bow that only you can play" (312). The attack after the concert that breaks Simone’s hand and destroys his cello initially appears to shatter his artistic future, but the epilogue describes his complete recovery. The community comes together to purchase him a new cello. Although Theo has died from a fall as he watched the attack, the lesson of community and kindness continue even after his death.
Cast of characters—Shep and Addie Carlisle
Shep and Addie are the owners of the Chalice, the local coffee shop where the portraits hang. They are supportive, community-minded characters who provide a welcoming space for various people in the town, including Theo.
The Chalice is more than just a café—it is a hub for community interaction. After Theo’s death, Shep and Addie continue to operate the Chalice and keep his portrait on display as a tribute. Their coffee shop serves as a central gathering place in the novel, and they play a quiet but important role in fostering connections among the characters.
Cast of characters—Katherine Lesker
Katherine Lesker is a newspaper reporter who learns about Theo’s portrait gifts and contacts him to write a story. When they meet, Theo explains why he wants his acts of kindness to remain anonymous and asks her not to publish anything.
During their meeting, Theo gives Katherine her own portrait, which prompts her to share her difficult childhood experiences. She agrees to keep Theo’s secret and is promised an exclusive interview in the future.
During this meeting at the Fedder fountain, Theo encourages Katherine to let go of her painful past and accept a new self-image through the portrait he gives her.
Symbols—grapes and Port wine
Theo, talking with Tony, tells him that the grapes for the Port wine they’re drinking come from a “vineyard owned by the same family now that my father worked for when I was a boy. Did you know that all the port wine in the world comes from the hills of the Douro River Valley? One hundred miles, twenty-five thousand farmers, one hundred thousand acres of vines. “Port wine was invented by the British, and the port companies are now owned mostly by the Spanish. "
But only the Douro River Valley of Portugal can make the grapes. Since the eighteenth century, the hillsides have been terraced by the poor hardworking people of the villages along the river. Here is the interesting thing. There is very little soil on the hillsides, only rock. Rock like slate. Long before bulldozers and big machines came along, men had to work with hand tools and dynamite to make the land ready for the grapevines. That is why they are called ‘the vineyards of Hercules.’ . . . It is hard, hard work. Well, the farmers plant the small plants, and then the small plants have to grow deep, deep down to reach the water in the ground. For four meters and more, the taproots go down and down, weaving between the slate to find water. If all goes well, the vines grow, and when the summer is over, there is a beautiful crop. Then everyone along the river — men, women, children — begins the slow, steady work of harvest.
Symbols—grapes and Port wine
For ten, twenty, thirty, forty years, the port ages, some ruby, some white, some tawny. All those years in deep sleep, but the port is changing like a chrysalis, letting God take His time to do what only He can do. Water to wine, but slowly. It is all so remarkable.”
Theo points to the vintage on the label, saying;
“So, Tony, I remind you, the roots can only grow in stony, difficult ground. The pruner’s shears cut deep. The grapes are crushed and kept in the dark for decades. For the sake of the sweetness. For this very moment” (p. 284).
Questions for discussion
Of all the stories from characters to whom Theo presented their portraits, do you have a favorite?
Questions for discussion
All of the characters is this novel have stories—dreams they want to accomplish, tragedies that have impacted the person they are, experiences that have changed their lives.
Each of them represents something common to human life. So in a way, they are symbolic, or allegorical. Which character and story reverberated with you?
Questions for discussion
Why does Theo introduce himself only as Theo, no last name, nothing about his past.
Questions for discussion
Clarise is the character in this novel who does not accept Theo's invitation to join him at the fountain. Instead her boyfriend Cleave shows up, angrily confronts Theo, accuses him of being a predator, and then stomps on the wrapped portrait, leaving a boot print on Clarise’s face. Theo offers to have another drawn, but she declines.
What does this episode represent?
Questions for discussion
At one point in the book, Theo quotes a line of poetry to one of the characters. It’s from a line that William Wordsworth wrote: “The best portion of a good man’s life is the little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and love.”
Allen says, “This flies in the face of a culture where we all want to be viral. We all want to be big. We all want to be…you pick your word…radical, revolutionary, counter-cultural, whatever. This man was content with doing simple things in obscurity and doing everything possible to keep the camera off of himself.”
Questions for discussion
As we talked about last week, this is a character-driven novel, rather than a plot-driven novel, as mysteries and thrillers tend to be. As we also talked about, the short story tends to focus on a single, well-defined character at a pivotal moment, and his/her decision or action in response to that pivotal moment becomes a significant, defining characteristic—if you will, an illuminating insight into the essence of that character.
Although this novel doesn't develop all characters, it does develop several. We progressively discover the events in their lives that have defined them, most notably Theo himself.
What does this tell you about "knowing" people?
Questions for discussion
Although vastly different novels, By Any Other Name and Theo of Golden share an important symbol—portraits. What do portraits represent?
Why are Asher's portraits so uniquely revelatory? What is it about his portraits that Theo sees?
Questions for discussion
When Theo is talking with Katherine, he says:
“I would guess you’ve read Mr. Wordsworth, perhaps in a literature class at some point in your studies. He once wrote that the best portion of a good person’s life is ‘the little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and love.’ Tintern Abbey, yes?" (p. 217)
Allen himself refers to this quote, saying:
“This flies in the face of a culture where we all want to be viral. We all want to be big. We all want to be . . .you pick your word . . . radical, revolutionary, counter-cultural, whatever. This man was content with doing simple things in obscurity and doing everything possible to keep the camera off of himself.”
How does this reference fit in the novel?
One reviewer calls this "public recognition versus private connection."
Next Week
Background on the epistolary novel The Correspondent