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Irony
Definition of Metaphor
A metaphor is a figure of speech that compares two different things by saying that one thing is the other. The comparison in a metaphor can be stated explicitly, as... read full definition
A metaphor is a figure of speech that compares two different things by saying that one thing is the other. The comparison in a metaphor... read full definition
A metaphor is a figure of speech that compares two different things by saying that one thing is the other... read full definition
Chapter 25: The Three Together
Explanation and Analysis—A Broken Tool:
In Chapter 25, Zenobia accuses Hollingsworth of treating her like an object. She compares herself to a "broken tool" in a metaphor that evokes the agrarian origins of Blithedale and Hollingsworth's superficial interest in its inhabitants:
First, you aimed a death-blow, and a treacherous one, at this scheme of a purer and higher life, which so many noble spirits had wrought out. Then, because Coverdale could not be quite your slave, you threw him ruthlessly away. And you took me, too, into your plan, as long as there was hope of my being available, and now fling me aside again, a broken tool! But, foremost, and blackest of your sins, you stifled down your inmost consciousness!—you did a deadly wrong to your own heart!—you were ready to sacrifice this girl, whom, if God ever visibly showed a purpose, He put into your charge [...]
In this passage, Zenobia uses metaphor ("a broken tool") to compare herself to something cast aside by a man who has finished a project. The significance of this metaphor lies in its evocation of farming tools (as Hawthorne based Blithedale on an agrarian community). It also suggests that Hollingsworth used Zenobia to build his part of Blithedale before discarding her. In the most basic sense, Hollingsworth treats her like an inanimate object, and here she realizes it with utter clarity.
This metaphor also highlights Zenobia's ability to grasp the reality of her own relationship with Hollingsworth as well as his relationship with Blithedale as a whole. He feigns interest, care, and diligence while using everyone around him to further his own interests. This drives Zenobia into a state of deep sadness, yet her words reveal the true strength of her character. She stands up for herself and calls out Hollingsworth for mistreating her. Her suicide is all the more shocking given the strength of her character, so this moment heightens the emotional contrast between the reader's expectation and Zenobia's reality.
Related Themes:
