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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
Key Examples in The Chosen
Chapter 1
Explanation and Analysis—Game of War:
In Chapter 1, Potok introduces readers to the main character of Reuven Malter and his youth softball coach, Mr. Galanter. Although Reuven is young and the softball league is primarily recreational, Mr. Galanter takes an authoritative and nearly militaristic approach to his coaching. To develop Galanter's character and introduce the presence of war to the novel, Potok crafts a metaphor for the softball game:
Goldberg, what kind of solid defensive front is that? Close in. A battleship could get between you and Malter. That’s it. Schwartz, what are you doing, looking for paratroops? This is a ball game. The enemy’s on the ground. That throw was wide, Goldberg. Throw like a sharpshooter. [...] No defensive holes in this war.
Related Themes:
Chapter 13
Explanation and Analysis—Blink of an Eye:
In Chapter 13, during a difficult conversation regarding life and death, Mr. Malter imparts further wisdom upon Reuven, using a specific metaphor to illustrate the fleeting nature of life on Earth:
Unlock with LitCharts A+Human beings do not live forever, Reuven. We live less than the time it takes to blink an eye, if we measure our lives against eternity. So it may be asked what value is there to a human life. [...] I learned a long time ago, Reuven, that a blink of an eye in itself is nothing. But the eye that blinks, that is something.
Related Themes:
