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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
Metaphors
Explanation and Analysis—Washing the Pot:
When Kernan’s friends—Cunningham, Power, and M’Coy—attempt to convince him to attend a Catholic retreat with them in order to become sober, they don’t directly state that this is their intention. Instead, they describe the reason they want to attend the retreat using a metaphor, as seen in the following passage:
—Yes, that’s it, said Mr Cunningham, Jack and I and M’Coy here—we’re all going to wash the pot.
He uttered the metaphor with a certain homely energy and, encouraged by his own voice, proceeded:
—You see, we may as well all admit we’re a nice collection of scoundrels, one and all. I say, one and all, he added with gruff charity and turning to Mr Power. Own up now!
—I own up,” said Mr Power.
—And I own up, said Mr M’Coy.
—So we’re going to wash the pot together, said Mr Cunningham.
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—Shortened Tongue:
After Kernan drunkenly falls down the stairs at the pub and bites off a chunk of his tongue, his wife receives him at home and takes care of him. In the following passage, she reflects on her husband’s accident, using a metaphor in the process:
Unlock with LitCharts A+After a quarter of a century of married life, she had very few illusions left […]. She was tempted to see a curious appropriateness in [Kernan’s] accident and, but that she did not wish to seem bloody-minded, she would have told the gentlemen that Mr Kernan’s tongue would not suffer by being shortened.
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—Spiritual Accountant:
Once the men make it to the Catholic retreat, they listen attentively to Father Purdon’s sermon. The priest’s speech centers on metaphorically comparing himself to an accountant, as seen in the following passage:
Unlock with LitCharts A+He told his hearers that he was there that evening for no terrifying, no extravagant purpose; but as a man of the world speaking to his fellow-men. He came to speak to business men and he would speak to them in a businesslike way. If he might use the metaphor, he said, he was their spiritual accountant; and he wished each and every one of his hearers to open his books, the books of his spiritual life, and see if they tallied accurately with conscience.
Related Themes:
