Drawing an Unusual Comparison:
Metaphor, Simile, Extended
Metaphor and Stanza
Exploring Metaphor and Simile
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Exploring Metaphor and
Simile
One way a poet can articulate the astounding is
by combining familiar details in a new way
You‟ve already learned meaning comes from a
simple, concrete story, a title and a single
closing sentence.
But it also comes from combinations of
different elements
Exploring Metaphor and
Simile
Poetic terms for comparison - metaphors and
similes
They articulate what is difficult to say using
literal language.
Exploring Metaphor and
Simile
Literal Language – What is actually meant
Example: Black holes – A concentration of
matter that creates a gravitational field strong
enough to curve spacetime so that nothing
can escape, not even light.
Huh?
Exploring Metaphor and
Simile
Figurative language will explain what is
difficult to conceive or see.
Example: Black holes – a magnet or a
whirlpool
It is comparing something unknown (black
hole) with something familiar or imaginable
(magnet or whirlpool).
You’re
• Who is the “you” the speaker addresses?
Speaker‟s unborn child. Look at lines 7, 9, 16
which suggest this. Lines 1 and 3 explain this even
more.
• What is the speaker‟s attitude toward this “you?”
Curiosity, wonderment, satisfaction. Lines 5-8, 17
– 18
• Shift in attitude? Mood – first stanza is full of
concrete, tangible images, but the second has
uncertainty.
The Writer
• In stanzas 1-3, to what is the daughter‟s writing
indirectly compared?
– To a difficult journey on a ship
• Line 1: The daughter is at the „prow‟ of the house
• Line 2: Describes light breaking, as water does on the side
of a ship
• Line 8: The subject of her writing is „cargo‟
• Lines 5 and 6: Compare the typing to the sound of a chain
hauled over a „gunwhale‟ which is the side of a ship
The Writer
• In stanzas 6-11, a second comparison is extended. To
what, now, is the daughter‟s writing compared? What
words suggest this comparison?
– Indirectly compared to the plight of a starling trapped
indoors. The starling is “sleek,” “wild,” and “dark” words
that echo the earlier comparison of the daughter‟s writing to
a ship at sea. The starling is „humped and bloody,‟ and the
girl‟s writing is a „commotion.” Also, both the daughter
writing and the starling fighting for its life occur in the same
room – which highlights the relationship between the two
• What is suggested about the nature of writing with
these two comparisons?
– Writing is difficult, dangerous and essential for life (rough
journey at sea and a starling fighting for its life and
freedom)
Exploring Metaphor and
Simile
Comparison is one of the most
natural human impulses.
Metaphors and similes are the most
used comparison techniques.
Exploring Metaphor and
Simile
Similes use the words like, as, than or seems to
compare two items.
Example: Snug as a bug
Metaphors imply similarity
Example: Oh high riser, my little loaf
Exploring Metaphor and
Simile
Using these devices can be tricky.
They are naturally poetic, since they may be unusual,
wild and evocative. But they can be overdone.
Too many in a poem can leave the reader feeling as
if they have eaten too much sugar.
Exploring Metaphor and
Simile
Use them where they seem natural.
Use the x – y formula:
Comparing the unfamiliar (x) to the familiar (y)
This will help to stimulate emotions and imagination
Writer’s Practice 3.1
• Part A
– Select 2 or 3 people that evoke strong feelings in
you. The feelings can be any emotion.
• For each person, list 4 or 5 places that you
associate with that person and explain the reason
for the connections.
– For each place listed, name 2 or 3 objects that are
common to each place and associate the object
with the person‟s character.
Person Place Reason
Jason West Memphis Dates at the Dog Track,
meeting during college
Mom Wisconsin Summer trips to
visit her side of
the family
Person Place Object Association
Jason Dog Track Program Uncertain,
Tickets luck, loser,
schemes
Mom Wisconsin House, dog Family,
loyal, smelly
Writer’s Practice 3.1
• Part B
– Review the tables from Part A and answer the
listed questions.
Writer’s Practice 3.1
• Write in Your Journal
– Using the ideas generated, make a list of
metaphors and similes you associated with the
person you answered Part B questions about.
– Avoid overused, obvious, trite comparisons
– May include metaphors and similes that have
nothing to do with the person, but rather the
places and objects associated with that person
– Come up with at least 5 metaphors and 5 similes