Allusion family before the destruction. God commanded Lot and his family not to look back as they fled. Lot's wife disobeyed and looked back, and she was immediately turned into a pillar of salt as punishment for her disobedience. An allusion to Lot's wife or to a pillar of salt is usually a reference to someone who unwisely chooses to look back once he or she has begun on a course of action or to someone who disobeys an explicit rule or command. In Greek mythology, Cassandra, the daughter of Trojan king Priam, was loved by Apollo, who gave her the
The City and the Pillar of which is reinforced by the novel's epigraph from the Book of Genesis 19:26 "But his wife looked back from behind him and she became a pillar of salt." "The City and the Pillar" sparked a public scandal, including notoriety and criticism, not only since it was released at a time when homosexuality was commonly considered immoral, but also because it was the first book by an accepted American author to portray overt homosexuality as a natural behavior. The controversial reception began before the novel hit bookshelves. Prior to its even being published, an editor at EP Dutton said to