Module 1 Section 3

Figurative Language: Similes and Metaphors

Figurative Language is a term that covers a wide variety of figures of speech or writing and speaking "tricks" that date back to the ancient Greeks. It is included in the general term rhetoric. In this section, we will examine some of the most common examples of figurative language.

Simile

A simile is a direct comparison of two unlike objects or ideas, almost always using the words like or as (or than, when something is said to be more than something or less than something in the comparison). It is possible (but extremely rare) to compose a simile without these connecting words by having the comparison clearly implied in the sentence structure. The power of similes lies in their ability to force the reader to see something in a different light, one that usually involves a powerful image.

Basic examples of simile include:

• Miguel ran like lightning around the track.
• Sandra swam like a dolphin.
• Mike tried not to let it show but thought, "This steak is tough as leather!"

Metaphor

A metaphor is like a simile in that it is a comparison, but it is implied. There is no like or as to signal it; the item is treated as if it were the item to which it is being compared.

Basic examples of metaphor include:

• The snow was a white blanket on the landscape.
• "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players." - William Shakespeare, As You Like It.