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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 Gift of the Magi
Similes
Explanation and Analysis—Immovable as a Setter:
Della is anxiously waiting for Jim to enter the flat, praying that he will still find her pretty when he sees her short hair. The story uses the simile of a setter scenting quail to illustrate Jim's reaction to Della:
Jim stopped inside the door, as immovable as a setter at the scent of quail. His eyes were fixed upon Della, and there was an expression in them that she could not read, and it terrified her. It was not anger, nor surprise, nor disapproval, nor horror, nor any of the sentiments that she had been prepared for. He simply stared at her fixedly with that peculiar expression on his face.
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—Schoolboy or Chorus Girl:
After Della gets her hair cut and shops for Jim's Christmas present, she goes home and attempts to salvage her newly shorn hairstyle. The story uses two similes—"like a truant schoolboy" and "like a Coney Island chorus girl"—to illustrate Della's new look:
Unlock with LitCharts A+Within forty minutes her head was covered with tiny, close-lying curls that made her look wonderfully like a truant schoolboy.
Related Themes:
