Homage

For medieval usage see homage (medieval) and commendation ceremony, or Homage (disambiguation)

A homage to muralist Eva Cockcroft in the East Village of New York City.

Homage (from the French: Hommage) is generally used in modern English to mean any public show of respect to someone to whom one feels indebted. In this sense, a reference within a creative work to someone who greatly influenced the artist would be an homage. It is typically used to denote a reference in a work of art or literature to another, at least somewhat widely known, work. In literature and film, an homage is similar to an allusion, except that whereas an allusion merely refers to another work, a homage typically repeats a recognizable scene or stylistic element from the other work. Homage is also similar to parody, except that parodies typically exaggerate characteristics of previous works for comedic effect.

Homage may occasionally be perceived negatively by critics as a technique often associated with amateur creators. They may be regarded as fannish or as an excuse for lack of originality.

See also

• Intertextuality
• Pastiche
• Archetype
• TN
• Stock character
• In-joke

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