Difference Between Allegory and Parable (With Table)

Allegory is a literary device that develops a story in the form of artwork. In Allegory, the story had narrated by using the characters, events, places. In Allegory, Characters, events and places help in describing real-world issues in the form of stories. Allegory used to deliver a broad message to the world. Allegory helps the writers to create distance between themselves and the problems.  

In Contrast, Parable is a literary device that dictates the short stories. These stories deliver morals and principles to the world. Parables are different from fables, where fables use animals, plants, inanimate objects to develop the story. Parable devices use human characters to describe moral stories.  

Comparison Table Between Allegory and Parable  

What is Allegory?  

Allegory is a literary device that helps in developing the stories by artwork. Allegory devices use, to narrate the story by using characters, places and events to deliver a message about real-world issues. Allegory work on arts reveals the hidden meaning of the artwork with morals. The stories of allegories describe the real problems in the world and occurrences. Allegory had used to deliver a broad message to the world. Allegory helps the writers to create distance between themselves and the issues. The issues had strongly analyzed of politics and social realities. It is a short story that explains the lengthy points about society.  

Allegory devices had used to explain the large and complex motives most simply. Some of the Characteristics of the Allegory are, Writers values, Multiple Meanings, Polarizing Relationships and Object Personification. Allegories are different from metaphors where metaphors had used to describe the speech with brief figures. The Allegory device conveys the whole story with characters. Allegories had differentiated into two types,  

• Political or historical allegories  
•  The Allegory of Ideas.  

The purpose of the Allegories is the writer should convey the hidden meaning of a story by symbolic figures, characters, places, events, actions. Some of the examples of the Allegories are,  

1. Animal Farm  
2. The Faerie Queene  
3. The Frog and Nightingale  
4. The Scarlet Letter  
5. Lord of the Flies  

The author is willing to convey the moral or political meaning through the above symbols. Allegories can write in sentences, poetry, literature, novels, movies and many others.  

What is Parable?  

The Parable is a literary device that helps to convey morals or principles through a short story. Parable had used to dictate the prose or verse with instructive morals. Parables use human devices to describe the stories. Parable devices are different from Fables, where fables use animals, plants, inanimate objects to develop the story. Parable devices use human characters to convey the morals where readers can feel the things with imagination while reading the stories.

The Parable is a Greek word that means ‘Comparison’. The Parable is teaching the moral lesson that relates to society with a brief narrative. Parable also coveys the universal truth by using symbols, metaphors and simile in moral lessons.   

The intensions of the Parables are to teach the morals, principles or lessons in a brief story where readers can understand easily. Primarily Parable devices taught the religious or moral stories. There are so many parables that had attributed to Jesus. The Parables had distinguished into three groups they are Similitude, Parable, Exemplary story. The Exemplary story is also known as Illusions. The types of Parables are,   

• Similes  
• Extended Comparisons   
• Similitude  
• Example stories  
• Narrative stories  
• Non-Christian Parables  

Similes are the short type of stories that develops to convey morals. Parables had primarily compact about Jesus in the 19th century. To covey the truth, Jesus used to teach the Parables in ancient days. Some of the examples of the Parables are,  

1. Bible  
2. Quran  
3. Parable of the Pearl  
4. The Farmers seeds  
5. Storytime with Jesus  
6. Two Sons  

There are so many Parables and the Parables taught by Jesus to live in the world with dignity. Bible and Quran are the religious Parables where people had used to read. Parables will use to keep the people in the right way to reach their goals.   

Main Differences Between Allegory and Parables  

1. Allegory is a literary device that conveys the story in the form of art. In contrast, Parable is a literary device that describes morals in the form of short stories.  
2. Allegory uses symbols, images, characters, places and events to develop a story, where Parable use the human characters to explain a story.  
3. Allegory works on art to describe the hidden meaning and, the Parable work on brief stories that convey the morals.  
4. Allegory reveals the hidden meaning of the story where Parables teach the morals with brief stories.  
5. The writers create the distance to find the truth in Allegory, where Jesus had taught the parables.  

Conclusion  

Allegory is a literary device that develops a story in the form of artwork. Allegory uses symbols, images, characters, places and events to describe a story. Allegory reveals the hidden meaning of the story.  

In contrast, the Parables use human characters to convey the morals where readers can feel the things with imagination while reading the stories. The Parable is a Greek word that refers to ‘Comparison’. 

References

1. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1560206
2. https://www.manchesterhive.com/downloadpdf/journals/bjrl/42/2/article-p273.pdf
3. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=P2UvmRVLF18C&oi=fnd&pg=PR11&dq=+Allegory+and+Parable&ots=gSYK28mZYk&sig=NRImRfSzvJ6ghy625XdBELctMbk