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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
Key Examples in A&P
Similes
Explanation and Analysis—Like a Pinball Machine:
After the trio of bathing-suit-clad girls walks down an aisle of the A&P and out of Sammy’s sight, Sammy is desperate to see them again. In the following passage, Sammy uses a simile to capture his agitated internal state:
The store's pretty empty, it being Thursday afternoon, so there was nothing much to do except lean on the register and wait for the girls to show up again. The whole store was like a pinball machine and I didn't know which tunnel they'd come out of.
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—Like a Sheet of Metal:
When describing the appearance of the leader of the trio of bathing-suit-clad girls, Sammy uses a simile, as seen in the following passage:
Unlock with LitCharts A+With the straps pushed off, there was nothing between the top of the suit and the top of her head except just her, this clean bare plane of the top of her chest down from the shoulder bones like a dented sheet of metal tilted to the light. I mean, it was more than pretty.
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—Buzzy Mind:
Near the beginning of the story, when theorizing about the trio of bathing-suit-clad teenage girls who walk into the A&P, Sammy uses a simile, as seen in the following passage:
Unlock with LitCharts A+You never know for sure how girls' minds work (do you really think it's a mind in there or just a little buzz like a bee in a glass jar?) but you got the idea she had talked the other two into coming in here with her, and now she was showing them how to do it, walk slow and hold yourself straight.
Related Themes:
