With Rodman around, Jordan has become more of a deity than ever. The author assumed readers would be familiar with the appropriate references. In so doing, the authors can imply additional meanings, convey a sense of shared understanding, and express thoughts in a more picturesque way. Reference and association are often used to imply acceptance or rejection, approval or disapproval. Reference and association work in somewhat similar ways.
Reference calls attention to a particular person, event, or idea.
It draws a link to shared knowledge outside the text. Association invokes ideas and feelings through a particular reference. You do not have to be able to distinguish between reference and association. It is enough that you infer meanings and judgments that seemingly go beyond the specific words on the page. Rely on both your prior knowledge and your imagination.