BRUTUS. Remember March, the ides of March, remember.

Did not great Julius bleed for justice’ sake?

What villain touched his body, that did stab,

And not for justice? What, shall one of us,

That struck the foremost man of all this world

But for supporting robbers, shall we now

Contaminate our fingers with base bribes,

And sell the mighty space of our large honours

For so much trash as may be graspèd thus?

I had rather be a dog and bay the moon

Than such a Roman.

–The Tragedy of Julius Caesar,
William Shakespeare

Which statements best interpret the allusion used in the passage? Check all that apply.

The ides means “bad news.”
The ides of March is March 15.
This is a cultural and historical allusion.
There are several references to the ides.
The ides of March signals Caesar’s death.
Shakespeare used an old method of dates.
The play was based on historical events surrounding the murder of Julius Caesar.

The ides means “bad news.”
The ides of March is March 15.
This is a cultural and historical allusion.
The ides of March signals Caesar’s death.
The play was based on historical events surrounding the murder of Julius Caesar.

Explanation:

The allusion is a literary device or rhetorical figure that is used to make a direct or indirect reference to places, people, events ... through the implication or the link that the sender makes from one object to another.

It is one of the simplest literary figures to detect as long as the reader or sender knows the "game" established by the issuer, writer or artist.

The definition of allusion, in short, could be to refer to a topic, object or event through the link it has with another. It is logical, then, that this rhetorical figure is normally accompanied by metaphors and other literary figures.