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Definition of Simile
A simile is a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things. To make the comparison, similes most often use the connecting words "like" or "as," but can also... read full definition
A simile is a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things. To make the comparison, similes most often use the connecting words "like... read full definition
A simile is a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things. To make the comparison, similes most often... read full definition
Similes
Explanation and Analysis—Pain in the Throat:
Lilia’s emotional climax arrives as she returns from trick-or-treating to find the jack-o’-lantern smashed on the doorsteps and a home reeling from the imminent threat of war. As she recalls:
In the glare of her headlights I saw that our pumpkin had been shattered, its thick shell strewn in chunks across the grass. I felt the sting of tears in my eyes, and a sudden pain in my throat, as if it had been stuffed with the sharp tiny pebbles that crunched with each step under my aching feet.
The story’s only instance of simile is a visceral one. Lilia likens the pain in her throat to “tiny pebbles” crunching underfoot, a comparison that seemingly recalls the grittiness of East Pakistan’s tank-occupied, “dusty streets.” The feeling is both acute and oppressive—the “sharp” pebbles pressing against the insides of her throat while crunching at the same time. The pain simultaneously acquires a piercing quality and the features of a dull ache. As the “narrow brick walkways” of her hometown have shattered, the simile gestures at her childhood worldview suddenly crumbling in on itself.
The fact that these double senses of pain strike her “throat” is significant, too. For a narrative that so immediately focuses on her consumption of Mr. Pirzada’s candies, the simile also draws a subtle connection to the very organ that first tasted companionship. Where she had formerly savored the sweetness of friendship, she now feels the extraordinary pain of loss and sadness. The world no longer accommodates her childish ignorance, and Lilia first senses this change in the same way she once ate Mr. Pirzada’s candies.
Related Themes:
