Which term describes stories or poems in which an author uses animals or objects to represent moral, political, or religious meaning?

• A. Symbolism
• B. Allegories
• C. Metaphor
• D. Personification

Answer: (B)

Allegory is an extended narrative in which characters and events stand for a larger moral, political, or religious meaning beyond the surface story. When an author uses animals or objects to represent those deeper ideas and the plot works on two levels, the surface tale and the hidden message, that’s allegory. A well-known example is Animal Farm, where talking animals enact a political critique that maps onto real-world events and ideas.

Symbolism involves using symbols within a story to represent ideas, but it isn’t necessarily a complete two-level narrative like an allegory. Metaphor is a direct comparison between two things, not a whole story carrying a deeper, mapped meaning. Personification gives human traits to nonhuman things, but that device alone doesn’t imply a broader moral or political message embedded in an entire narrative.