<|system|>
What is the source of the allusion in the sentence below?
Brennan's recent behavior made his parents begin to see his friend Edgar as some sort of Svengali.
A: literature
B: modern history</s>.
<|user|>
Can you answer based on context?
<|assistant|>
The source of the allusion Svengali is literature.
In George du Maurier's novel Trilby, Svengali is a hypnotist who exerts such power over the central character that she is suddenly able to sing, which she was unable to do before.
The allusion Svengali means a person with an unduly strong influence over someone else.