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Hyperbole
Definition of Idiom
An idiom is a phrase that conveys a figurative meaning that is difficult or impossible to understand based solely on a literal interpretation of the words in the phrase. For... read full definition
An idiom is a phrase that conveys a figurative meaning that is difficult or impossible to understand based solely on a literal interpretation of the... read full definition
An idiom is a phrase that conveys a figurative meaning that is difficult or impossible to understand based solely on... read full definition
Chapter 16
Explanation and Analysis—Larger Seafood:
In Chapter 16, Steeply asks if Marathe and the A.F.R. are behind the death of the medical attaché, who appears to be the first victim of The Entertainment. Marathe responds with a garbled English idiom, the humor of which foreshadows Orin's involvement in the whole affair:
‘We have neither digestive medicals nor diplomatic entourages on any lists for action. You have personally seen A.F.R.’s initial lists. Nor in particular Montreal civilians. We have, as one will say, larger seafood to cook.’
Related Themes:
Chapter 18
Explanation and Analysis—E Unibus Pluram:
In Chapter 18, Hal and a group of other students discuss the competitive, grueling nature of their tennis training at E.T.A. When Hal emphasizes all of their "aloneness," Ingersoll responds with a parody of an idiom:
Unlock with LitCharts A+‘We’re all on each other’s food chain. All of us. It’s an individual sport. Welcome to the meaning of individual. We’re each deeply alone here. It’s what we all have in common, this aloneness.’
‘E Unibus Pluram,’ Ingersoll muses.
Related Themes:
Chapter 43
Explanation and Analysis—Blind Faith:
In Chapter 43, the narrator describes Gately's surreal process of realizing the AA works for him. Through the use of an idiom, he reflects that it seems like a paradox:
Unlock with LitCharts A+[O]lder guys...will tell you in terse simple imperative clauses exactly what to do, and where and when to do it (though never How or Why); and at this point you’ve started to have an almost classic sort of Blind Faith in the older guys, a Blind Faith in them born not of zealotry or even belief but just of a chilled conviction that you have no faith whatsoever left in yourself; and now if the older guys say Jump you ask them to hold their hand at the desired height, and now they’ve got you, and you’re free.
Related Themes:
