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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 The Bean Trees
Chapter 3: Jesus Is Lord Used Tires
Explanation and Analysis—Hippo Ballerinas:
In this scene, the narration uses both a simile and an allusion to describe the morning clouds as the narrator crosses into Arizona:
We crossed the Arizona state line at sunup. The clouds were pink and fat and hilarious-looking, like the hippo ballerinas in a Disney movie.
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—Gregory Peck:
This passage from Chapter 3 uses an allusion to actor Gregory Peck to color the narrator’s description of a stranger:
Unlock with LitCharts A+He had on camouflage army pants and a black baseball cap with cloth flaps hanging down in the back, such as Gregory Peck or whoever it was always wore in those old Foreign Legion movies. His T-shirt said VISITOR FROM ANOTHER PLANET. That’s me, I thought. I should be wearing that shirt.
Related Themes:
Chapter 5: Harmonious Space
Explanation and Analysis—New Life:
In this scene from Chapter 5, the narration uses a simile to liken the arrival of a train to a vital biological process:
Unlock with LitCharts A+In the old days I suppose it would have been bringing the city a fresh load of life, like a blood vessel carrying platelets to circulate through the lungs.
Related Themes:
Chapter 9: Ismene
Explanation and Analysis—Empty Hands:
In this moment from Chapter 9, Kingsolver uses a simile to layer emotional depth onto a quiet, visually striking scene:
Unlock with LitCharts A+It was after sunset and the moon was already up. A fig grew by the back door, an old, stubborn tree that was slow to leaf out. The moon threw shadows of fig branches that curled like empty hands across Estevan’s face and his chest. Something inside this man was turning inside out.
Related Themes:
Chapter 12: Into the Terrible Night
Explanation and Analysis—Hand of God:
In this moment, the narration uses a simile to convey the sight of an approaching storm:
Unlock with LitCharts A+A storm was coming up from the south, moving slowly. It looked something like a huge blue-gray shower curtain being drawn along by the hand of God.
Related Themes:
Chapter 17: Rhizobia
Explanation and Analysis—Pack Rat:
In this description from Chapter 12, the narration uses a simile to compare Turtle’s behavior to that of a desert rodent:
Unlock with LitCharts A+She was like a pack rat, taking possession of any item that struck her fancy […] and tucking another one into its place.
Related Themes:
