Throughout the eighteenth century, many authors looked to the past for inspiration and for direction in their writing; one such author, Laurence Sterne, wrote such works as Tristram Shandy and A Sentimental Journey. This English author, clergyman, and all-round witty fellow followed the current trends of the day in his writing, by not only referring to the past, but also to specific authors. Furthermore, he adhered to the examples set by his predecessors in his use of digression as a literary device. Sterne uses conventional, non-linear standards of digression and allusion common in the seventeenth-century throughout his novel, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman.

Often accused of excessive, unaccredited allusion, Laurence Sterne has seen the ages turn away from him, shying from his plagiarism for more "original" works. Despite the rhetoric decrying him, Stedmond, quoting Samuel Pratt, speaks of Sterne's style in glowing terms that highlight...