The term analogue is used in

literary history The history of literature is the historical development of writings in prose or poetry that attempt to provide entertainment, enlightenment, or instruction to the reader/listener/observer, as well as the development of the literary techniques ...

in two related senses:Literary Terms and Definitions: A
Analog * a work which resembles another in terms of one or more motifs,

characters Character or Characters may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Character'' (novel), a 1936 Dutch novel by Ferdinand Bordewijk * ''Characters'' (Theophrastus), a classical Greek set of character sketches attributed to The ...

, scenes, phrases or events. * an individual motif, character, scene, event or phrase which resembles one found in another work. Similarities may be fortuitous, in which case the merit of establishing an analogue is that it makes it possible to see how works from different authors (perhaps also in different languages, periods, genres) treat similar characters or motifs. But the term is used particularly in the study of

legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess ...

s, folk tales and oral literature for works that have features in common either because they derive from a shared tradition or because they both rework material from a specific older text, which may or may not still survive. For example, some claim the story of Noah and the

Flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

in the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...

and the

Epic of Gilgamesh The ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' () is an epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, and is regarded as the earliest surviving notable literature and the second oldest religious text, after the Pyramid Texts. The literary history of Gilgamesh begins with ...

are analogues. However, where one work draws directly on another, the term ''analogue'' is inappropriate: the earlier work is the ''source'' of the later. In the literature of earlier periods, it may not be easy to decide whether a particular work is a direct source for another, especially if there are uncertainties of dating. The phrase ''sources and analogues'' is used to cover ''all'' material relevant to the creation of a particular work.For example
Old English Sources and Analogues
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References

Literary concepts {{lit-stub