Question

Read the selection below from the poem “The King Sends Three Cats to Guinevere” by Marjorie Allen Seiffert and answer the question that follows.
I send you three grey cats with gifts—
(For uniformity of metaphor,
Since Bacchus, Satan, and the Hangman
Are not contemporaneous in my mythology)
I send you three grey cats with gifts,
Queen Guinevere,
To warn you, sleekly, silently
To pay the forfeit.

Which poetic device does the speaker use in the line, “Since Bacchus, Satan, and the Hangman”?

allusion
hyperbole
simile
metonymy

Answer 1

My best assumption is an allusion  

Answer 2

Answer:

The poetic device used by the speaker in the line, "Since Bacchus, Satan, and the Hangman" is letter A. allusion.

Explanation:

An allusion is a figure of speech in which a reference is made to something or someone, but in an indirect manner. For instance calling someone a Judas is an allusion to the biblical figure who betrayed Jesus Christ. The speaker won't explain who Judas is, he simply mentions him trusting the audience will grasp the reason behind - which would be to call someone a traitor.

That is precisely what we have in the poem “The King Sends Three Cats to Guinevere”, by Marjorie Allen Seiffert. The speaker of the poem would be King Arthur himself, addressing Guinevere after being betrayed by her. He alludes to three figures, Bacchus, Satan, and the Hagman and, in an ironic manner, mentions the fact that they belong to a mythology different than the one he belongs to. However, since this is an allusion, he does not explain who they are.