ˈallegorism rare.
(ˈælɪgərɪz(ə)m)
[f. allegorize. Cf. baptize, baptism. See -ize.]
The use of allegory; the allegorical method of interpreting Scripture. (Cf. allegorist.)
| 1889 Sat. Rev. 18 May 613/1 [His views] rest upon what the early Fathers called Allegorism—that is, on the spiritual, not the literal, interpretation of our Lord's words. Nor is Allegorism ‘Gnostic’. 1901 Jewish Encycl. I. Allegorical interpretation [of Scripture]. Expositors of this system may be called allegorists; the system itself, allegorism. 1919 P. H. Osmond Myst. Poets Engl. Ch. 350 No doubt there is a rather slippery descent from this type of mysticism, through symbolism, to mere allegorism. |