Question

Read the following excerpt from "Notes of a Native Son" by James Baldwin:

He had been born in New Orleans and had been a quite
young man there during the time that Louis Armstrong, a
boy, was running errands for the dives and honky-tonks of
what was always presented to me as one of the most
wicked of cities - to this day, whenever I think of New
Orleans, I also helplessly think of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Which sentence best analyzes the author's use of allusion in this passage?
O
A. The author mentions how musician Louis Armstrong was
hardworking to show how he learned core values even in Sodom
and Gomorrah.
O
B. The author refers to King David to suggest that his father
possessed wisdom beyond his years.
C. The author refers to the evil of Sodom and Gomorrah to suggest a
comparison to the contemporary city of New Orleans.
O
D. The author describes Louisiana as his father's home to suggest he
was a person who enjoyed eating crawfish and listening to jazz.

Answer 1

C. The author refers to the evil of Sodom and Gomorrah to suggest a comparison to the contemporary city of New Orleans.

Step-by-step explanation:

An allusion is a figure that is used to describe something without directly referring to it and explicitly saying what it is, but by using some different ideas, usually knowledgable to a wider audience.

That is why the author here refers to what he imagines in New Orleans as Sodom and Gomorrah. He refers to the well known Biblical story about the cities where many vile people lived who did harm and sins, so God destroyed them at the end as a punishment for their outrageous behavior.

By alluding to these Biblical places and stories, the author is trying to say us all the worst possible happenings were present to see in New Orleans, and still are, as he is still "to this day" making that mental connection.