Similes Pro versus Con
Simile is the comparison of two unlike things using like or as. Related to metaphor
Example:
He eats like a pig. Vines like golden prisons.
Poets are fond of the use of similes to present the common place in a way that it is fresh and intriguing.
Poetry is, first of all, a communication - a thought or message conveyed by the writer to the reader. It is not only an act of creation, but an act of sharing. It is therefore important to the reader that he understands how the poet uses words, how he puts fresh vigor and new meaning into words. The reader's understanding is immeasurably increased if he is familiar with the many techniques or devices of poetry. Some of these are extremely simple; a few are rather elaborate.
The simplest and also the most effective poetic device is the use of comparison. It might almost be said that poetry is founded on two main means of comparing things: simile and metaphor. We heighten our ordinary speech by the continual use of such comparisons as "fresh as a daisy," "tough as leather," "comfortable as an old shoe," "it fits like the Paper on the wall," "gay as a lark," "happy as the day is long, pretty as a picture." These are all recognizable similes; they use the words "as" or "like."
PRO: Because of comparison and association, familiar objects become strange and glamorous. It might be said that a Poet is a man who sees resemblances in all things.
CON: Similes are also tired old cliche's. And what does "happy as the day is long" mean, anyhow? If its a day near winter solstice in the artic, that's not especially happy. Similes can be a crutch for those lacking in creativity. The use of a trite saying is not especially an instrument of compelling writing.
Bring back the metaphor! A metaphor is actually a condensed simile, for it omits "as" or "like." A metaphor establishes a relationship at once; it leaves more to the imagination. It is a shortcut to the meaning; it sets two unlike things side by side and makes us see the likeness between them. Emily Dickinson used comparison with great originality. She mixed similes and metaphors superbly in such poems as "A Book," "Indian Summer," and "A Cemetery." The first two lines of "A Book" compare poetry to a ship; the next two to a horse. But Emily Dickinson thought that the words "ship" and "horse" were too commonplace. The ship became a "frigate," a beautiful full-sailed vessel of romance; and the everyday "horse," the plodding beast of the field and puller of wagons, became instead a "courser," a swift and spirited steed, an adventurous creature whose hoofs beat out a brisk rhythm, "prancing" - like a page of inspired poetry.
Please omit all smilies from any replies.
Thank you.
Mari, your paean to the metaphor (which, I would argue, in addition to the sterling qualities you ascribe to it, can also lend a certain element of ambiguity to a comparison) has brought great joy to my otherwise gray and uneventful tax filing day.
Interestingly enough, my first literature teacher never brought out the difference like you did. I was thinking 'So?' during class back then. Didn't see much significance between the addition or lack of a 'like' or 'as'.
...my first literature teacher never brought out the difference like you did...
"...as you did..."
A simile is like a metaphor--but what a metaphor a simile can be! :-)
Once you've assimilated simile and metaphor, take a look at
these.
And then
this.Mari, your paean to the metaphor (which, I would argue, in addition to the sterling qualities you ascribe to it, can also lend a certain element of ambiguity to a comparison) has brought great joy to my otherwise gray and uneventful tax filing day.
Well, I'm pleased my little re-write of the original essay made SOMEONE happy! You may be interested in the
unedited version, as well.
Wish I could take full credit for it. It IS a nice bit of writing, isn't it?
Please omit all smilies from any replies.
What about similies?
I'd say the difference in effect of similies and metaphors is that a similie feels as if it makes a weaker assertion than a metaphor does. After all...if you find even one aspect in which A is "like" B, you've proven the simiie...while a metaphor almost defies you to find differences.
But I'll assert that there are tired old metaphoric cliches just as there are tired old similies.
"Tired old cliche" is both a tired old cliche itself, and redundant as well.
What about similies?
Fresh and original SIMILES are welcome, although the use of metaphor is preferred.
(At last, I get to be a spelling Nazi! ME! HA!)
I know! Let's come up with fresh and exciting cliche's! We could post our candidates here and come back in 20 years to see whose cliche' won. That's if we weren't too old and tired to care anymore.
Sorry...splitting my attention between the thread and a knotty programming problem. I stand [spelling] corrected.
OHGOODY GOODY GOODY!
WHAT EXCELLENT FUN!
Now--You're all so clever--start dazzling me!
(YAY!)
How 'bout Tony Harrison's Mark with a D? In this poem he compares his father's cremation with a loaf of bread being baked. That's pretty fresh. :D
This thread is da shizznit. Sorry, Comedy Central had that white rapper movie on last night.
How 'bout Tony Harrison's Mark with a D? In this poem he compares his father's cremation with a loaf of bread being baked. That's pretty fresh.
How inspiring that in his hour of knead he was able to rise to the occasion. If only his dad hadn't made an ash of himself.
smilelies are emotitive
meta4whores are logic.
How inspiring that in his hour of knead he was able to rise to the occasion. If only his dad hadn't made an ash of himself.
I try very hard not to like MaggieL. Sometimes, though, she just makes me laugh.
Simile is the comparison of two unlike things using like or as. Related to metaphor
Example:
He eats like a pig. Vines like golden prisons.
Time flies like an arrow.
Fruit flies like a banana.
Similes are indeed often overused, resulting in tired cliches. Metaphores certainly make a stronger assertion in their description. However I like my recently-coined simile which I use to describe my teething daughter: she's drooling like a carsick cat.
... Let's come up with fresh and exciting cliche's! ...
Isn't that an oxynoron?
I thought a simile was just a metaphor using "like" or "as".;)
How about "a face like a goalie on a dart team"?
Time flies like an arrow.
Fruit flies like a banana.
Ah, but, Grasshopper, you must read further:
The simplest and also the most effective poetic device is the use of comparison. It might almost be said that poetry is founded on two main means of comparing things: simile and metaphor. We heighten our ordinary speech by the continual use of such comparisons
Your analogy is quite brilliant, if I may say so. Fruit flies like a banana sounds like something Gomer Pyle might say until you listen to the subtext of the words. "Time flies AS an arrow" vs "Fruit flies AS a banana" is mere nonsense, but the play on words using "like" is quite clever.
I like you despite myself, Maggie.
But, tbh, mariachick, don' t you think that cloning threads here will unravel the very fabric of the cellar?
...but the play on words using "like" is quite clever. I like you despite myself, Maggie.
Wel, I can't take personal credit for that one; it's a classic illustration of the non-local nature of parsing English grammar often attributed to Marx.
Groucho, that is.
But then...
There is no less invention in aptly applying a thought found in a book, than in being the first author of the thought.
Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read.
Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read.
I cannot convey to you my relief upon reading these words. The lack of an adequate reading light within my dog has caused me any number of difficulties that I have been loathe to mention for fear of being targeted by a demonstration of naked PETA protesters. I am barely tolerated in my neighborhood as it is.
It is high time that science presents us with the transparent dog, so that we may hole up with our favorite book in the sanctity of Man's (and Woman's) Best Friend. Those of us with a creative bent might even scribble doggerel from such a place of refuge, and publishers would chase after with pooper scoopers to collect our witticisms.
I do believe that I am indeed the Queen of Flattened Fauna and my karma has run over my dogma at last. The hound of heaven that had been baying round my door now lies nickle thin in my driveway. A penny for my thoughts, indeed! It seems like they are a dime a dozen, now a days - "cloned", as some might have it.
@Jay McGee: Is this the part where I'm supposed to chant "Resistance is futile..." ?
Are you related to Simon, BTW? You seem to have an inordinate fascination with staying warm.
Poetry is, first of all, a communication - a thought or message conveyed by the writer to the reader.
That's a crock of shit. You might as well use the enigma code, as a poem, for conveying a thought or message.
If I write a poem and you read it......you decide what my message was. How do you know if you're right? How do I know if the message you got is the one I meant?
If each reader of a poem takes away a different message, what they got from reading it, then it's not a communication...it's entertainment. :eyebrow:
OK, back to the similies....I feel better.
OOOOOOOH! There already was a clone thread for this! Haha! Good one!
The lack of an adequate reading light within my dog has caused me any number of difficulties...
"
Possible cross-thread solution", she said doggedly.
OOOOOOOH! There already was a clone thread for this! Haha! Good one!
Checkmate, Steve! THIS is the clone thread and YOU replied to it. Gottcha! :lol:
You're allowed to respond to clone threads! I think you mis-read what Flint posted that day a while back. Or he wasn't clear. He meant you don't have to respond, because they are mostly created for the quick chuckle, not for a stream of responses. But, any post that gets hits is a good post, to me. It's almost more fun if a clone thread does better than the original! Like this one probably will. :)
Oh, and i knew this was the clone thread. Look at the post I put on Flint's thread when I didn't realize this thread existed. You beat me to it!
You're allowed to respond to clone threads! I think you mis-read what Flint posted that day a while back. Or he wasn't clear. He meant you don't have to respond, because they are mostly created for the quick chuckle, not for a stream of responses. But, any post that gets hits is a good post, to me. It's almost more fun if a clone thread does better than the original! Like this one probably will. :)
Oh, and i knew this was the clone thread. Look at the post I put on Flint's thread when I didn't realize this thread existed. You beat me to it!
Well, you folks need to get your rules straight! *pouts* Certain [COLOR="Red"]individuals[/COLOR] have joined this board and proceeded to give us lectures about our verbose posting style; denounced the use of our beloved collection of smilies, gathered just for us by the tireless UT; insinuated that we are either a bunch of meanies trying to be big shots on the Cellar; or if we're nice, calling us "helpie helpertons."
We have also been lectured about the WAY THINGS ARE DONE on other message boards and been told that certain [COLOR="red"]individuals[/COLOR] aren't going to change their posting style just for US. After all, its just the Internet, right?
Well, if its "just the Internet", why all the lecturing, hmmm? Why not just make one sentence posts, avoid the use of smilies, clone to your heart's content, and put the folks who have difficulty with these things on "ignore"?
That way, we could all get on with our lives and avoid these tedious discussions over the correct way to post to a message board.
Now that the first shock has worn off, I actually find the concept of clone threads amusing, and using @ to direct a post at someone can be a convenient form of shorthand at times. Maybe I'm the only "ancient" who has made such strides in evolution, but even this small sign of progress should cheer you somewhat.
So, why don't we move on to other things? And welcome to the Cellar. ;)
Better than what? Better than a fried egg? Better than a polar bear? Every day in every way, I'm getting better and better?
Should I rate my feelings on a scale of 1 - 110? I know! I could post a poll on how much (or less) better I feel at the moment!
I'm getting silly. I'll feel better if I go lay down inside my dog with a nice book and read myself to sleep. Yeah. Think I'll go do that.
All I can say is... I can not believe you cloned a thread! I shall alert UT and have you banned!!
;)
Oh wait... "lay down inside my dog" how does one do this??
That's a crock of shit. You might as well use the enigma code, as a poem, for conveying a thought or message.
If I write a poem and you read it......you decide what my message was. How do you know if you're right? How do I know if the message you got is the one I meant?
If each reader of a poem takes away a different message, what they got from reading it, then it's not a communication...it's entertainment. :eyebrow:
OK, back to the similies....I feel better.
brucie-pie, with poetry some readings are more
defendable than others. Some opinions are "more correct" (HA!) Ya know?:cool:
Oh wait... "lay down inside my dog" how does one do this??
You had to have been there. ;)
These are "parody threads", not clones, which would be identical.
There's nothing downright wrong with them, but most of the time they go over flatly. "Hey guys I just thought of a pun!" "Right."
However it is most revealing that this parody thread got more and smarter attention than the original. It speaks to what we pay attention to and how you build your reputation here.
"Here" or in any situation with human beings?
People are people, no matter "where" you are.
But you have to build your reputation separately in every new environment.
Yes, you have to build your reputation "here" or anywhere else, I just said that.
That's such a wonderful point, Flint, I can almost hear your reputation growing now. It's posts like that which really bring your thinking out in a way which people respect. People will surely read your threads now, it is obvious that they are not a waste of everyone's time. Good work man.
Could you put a [COLOR="Orange"]SMILIE[/COLOR] on that post?
I don't know what people mean without an animated cartoon face to explain it.
Advanced irony - the hits just keep on comin'. This is clearly what drives traffic to a message board: dynamic personality by the boatload! It's all about the Flinter! I want to party with you man!
"lay down inside my dog" how does one do this??
Feed him an unplucked goose.
"Here" or in any situation with human beings?
Some folks are so obsessed with "humanity" as a repository of all good and desirable traits (and apparently subject to conveniently variable definition) that I'm beginning to suspect they may be alien fanboys sent here in a vain attempt to discover what humanity actually is. Somehow, whatever they do is offered as evidence of their humanity, and whatever they don't like about you is clear evidence that you aren't human.
People are still just people, for better or worse, when they log on to the internet. Whatever you've learned in your life which applies to human nature is perfectly applicable on any website. There aren't any special exceptions on the internet for typical bad human behavior such as conclusion-jumping. There aren't any special rewards on the internet for typical good human behavior such as treating people with respect. Humanity isn't "good" or "bad" - it simply is what it is. Each human being is equally as valid as any other.
Each human being is equally as valid as any other.
What on earth could the attribute "valid" possibly mean when applied to a person? If it makes you feel good to be "valid", go right ahead, but...
You can't fix stupid.
@Maggie: You're really reaching for that appearance of disagreement there. It's clear that our posts actually state the same concept, IE every person is valid - It is a baseline quality, therefore it doesn't "mean" anything in relative terms.
@UT: We really do need a dead horse emoticon!
Ah!
Here it is :)
@Maggie It's clear that our posts actually state the same concept, IE every person is valid - It is a baseline quality, therefore it doesn't "mean" anything in relative terms.
It's not clear to me.
We hold these truths to be sacred and undeniable, that all men are created equal and independent; that from that equal creation they derive in rights inherent and unalienables, among which are the preservation of life, and liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Here we see "baseline qualities"--equal in every person--that have meaning. Some of Jefferson's contemporaries would have held that
not all men are created equal. His statement conveys meaning, even though it asserts that these qualities are inherent in all people. (Of course in practice he fell short of honoring it where his slaves were concerned.)
But what does your assertion "every person is valid" mean?
<h4>val·id <i>(adj.)</i></h3>
1. Well grounded; just: a valid objection.
2. Producing the desired results; efficacious: valid methods.
3. Having legal force; effective or binding: a valid title.
4. Logic
a. Containing premises from which the conclusion may logically be derived: a valid argument.
b. Correctly inferred or deduced from a premise: a valid conclusion.
5. Archaic Of sound health; robust.
Synonyms: valid, sound, cogent, convincing
These adjectives describe assertions, arguments, conclusions, reasons, or intellectual processes that are persuasive because they are well founded. What is valid is based on or borne out by truth or fact or has legal force: a valid excuse; a valid claim.
What is sound is free from logical flaws or is based on valid reasoning: a sound theory; sound principles.
Something cogent is both sound and compelling: cogent testimony; a cogent explanation.
Convincing implies the power to dispel doubt or overcome resistance or opposition: convincing proof.
Do any of the above meanings apply to your assertion? Or have you invented a new one?
@UT: That's a good one! It looks like a "Southpark" horse! (#1)
EDIT: Holy crap! Are they eating the dead horse?! (#2)
:dedhorse:
i saw this one, but he looks more like a lazy horse and he needs long mule ears. ;)
this one:
:dedhors2:
never heard of "eating a dead horse" unless of course one is talking "Farm Porn"
ewwww!
Ah, but there's a difference between a dead horse and a red herring.
"I don't actually have an answer so I'll claim that we agree and accuse you of beating a dead horse." is a red herring.
Ah, but there's a difference between a dead horse and a red herring.
"I don't actually have an answer so I'll claim that we agree and accuse you of beating a dead horse." is a red herring.
Great! Now, I'm going to be thinking about rotten fish for the rest of the day!
@Maggie: Since you're so good at specifiying exactly what things are called, can you give me a catch-phrase to describe what you're doing? (you know, attempting to create conflict out of thin air, when you know perfectly well what the other person means)
The definition I am using for valid is "having a legitimate basis".
I wanna know how come women can have multiple multiple orgasims,.... while i'm good for 2 to 15 minutes, and then its nighty night.
You people can argue all you want, but lay off the damn horses. :mad:
brucie-pie, with poetry some readings are more defendable than others. Some opinions are "more correct" (HA!) Ya know?:cool:
Precisely my point....if you have to defend the message you got from a poem, it's sure not a communication....it's a damn puzzle. :p
(you know, attempting to create conflict out of thin air, when you know perfectly well what the other person means)
But I don't "know perfectly well what you mean".
In fact, I suspect you emitted a string of words thinking it actually meant something when in fact it doesn't...and I have prompted you to elaborate on its meaning in the hope you may finally come to realize it has none. While it may have given you a nice warm relativist feeling to say it, it's semantically null.
So...when you say "all people are valid" you mean "all people have a legitimate basis". Thanks for clearing that up. Is it possible you're fond of saying "all people are valid" because it serves as a handy excuse for doing whatever you like? Nobody can challenge your point of view, because your "validity" is implictly equal to theirs, and you "have a legitimate basis".
Whatever that means.
Words never fail. We hear them, we read them; they enter into the mind and become part of us for as long as we shall live. Who speaks reason to his fellow men bestows it upon them. Who mouths inanity disorders thought for all who listen.
"All people have a legitimate basis.":lol2:
Is it possible you're fond of saying "all people are valid" because it serves as a handy excuse for doing whatever you like?
It is within the realm of possibility. However, that is not the case.
I am fond of commenting on the concept of respecting all people, despite the differences you have with them, in a general effort to improve the condition of living on planet Earth, with other human beings, all of whom have a unique point-of-view. If you haven't gotten that as being my point, then you aren't really paying attention. And
I can't be blamed for that.
Yes, everyone has a unique point of view. That doesn't oblige me to value those points-of-view equally (or wallow in the laughable pretense that thereby I would be "improving life on the planet".)
Any tree stump can treat everyone the same. I think people should exercise more discretion than that. Once someone has demonstrated themselves to be a dimbulb, they just don't rate as highly with me; fools suffered gladly have little motivation to leave their foolishness.
@Maggie: I didn't suggest a course of action (how to treat people, how to rate people, or how much discretion to apply - these are decisions best left to the individual). Reading comprehension: don't project your assumptions upon the text (creating ad hoc points to form a rebuttal against).
Much like reading an entire book, and taking away from it one line which resonated with you as something useful to you in your life, each person you encounter can be a learning experience. Each person has an internal validity not dependant on external value judgments. If you percieve everything through filters of preconcieved notions, you are not capable of processing new information. Part of growing as a person is expanding your understanding of others. Perhaps, especially the people you disagree with or do not understand.
Again Flint conflates "failure to understand" with other reactions. "To understand all" is not in fact "to forgive all".
As for the trite little sermon about "learning experiences", sometimes the take-home message from a "learning experience" with person ${x} is "${x} is a twit". Some people just are twits, and while it may not be their fault, that doesn't oblige anyone to "respect their validity"...nor is any great life lesson missed thereby.
As for the trite little sermon about "learning experiences", sometimes the take-home message from a "learning experience" with person ${x} is "${x} is a twit". Some people just are twits, and while it may not be their fault, that doesn't oblige anyone to "respect their validity"...nor is any great life lesson missed thereby.
Yes. What bothers me about this is that ${x}'s twit-ness is merely an opinion. It may be an informed opinion, but it usually is not. My neice is someone most people would dismiss as a 'twit', unworthy of further engagement. Fact is, my niece suffers from a neurological disorder that inhibits her mental and physical capabilities but these disabilities are
not immediately apparent. People who dismiss her are missing out on an incredible kid. It is nice, though, to sit in judgement of others. It makes one feel all invincible and stuff.
That's right, Brianna, every person is unique.
You know what I find interesting? No one has called Maggie on HER shit. I propose that MaggieL has, indeed, the recipe for the Final Solution. You go, Maggie. You go.
Oops. I suppose everything I just said was a Red Herring! My bad!
What bothers me about this is that ${x}'s twit-ness is merely an opinion. It may be an informed opinion, but it usually is not.
Well...that's an opinon *of* an opinion, which has all the weaknesses of an opinion, but in double measure.
"Twit" is glossed as "a foolish, annoying person". It's not a synonym for diminished mental capability.
And yes, indeed, judgements are judgemental. But either you make judgements or you wander through life aimlessly.
I look around and I see people with all sorts of confidence, plans, road maps, talent, brains, courage, heart, ambition, etc.
To have confidence, road maps and plans, you have to make judgements.
Way to cite that post from a serious thread where Brianna was really opening up as a person, and twist it to your sick purposes in this pointless argument you have single-handedly created and perpetuated. Bravo. That kind of behavior really encourages a healthy community spirit. We could all really learn alot from you - teach us, Maggie, teach us. We need your mean-spirited vibe to keep us on the right path.
Way to cite that post from a serious thread...
Isn't this a serious thread too? I'm perfectly serious.
I beleve there's an important connection between this warm-fuzzy relativist philosophy--where making judgements is bad and everything and everyone are uniquely but ineffably valuable--and feelings of rootlessness and directionlessness.
Philosophy matters, and critical thinking isn't just a nicety. If all you can do is accuse me of "sick, twisted purposes" in making a serious point, maybe it's
your seriousness that needs examination.
Right, right, you're right, I'm wrong. You're smart, I'm stupid. Jesus that gets boring.
http://www.jlist.com/IMAGE/5pkom
I beleve this says it ALL !!!
Even better with the handy image tags.
Baka gaijin indeed ...
The little boat gently drifted across the pond exactly the way a bowling ball wouldn’t.
http://bethanyamandamiller.wordpress.com/2011/02/22/the-56-bestworst-analogies-written-by-high-school-students/
The thunder was ominous-sounding, much like the sound of a thin sheet of metal being shaken backstage during the storm scene in a play.
This amused me like a bird that isn't quite dead amuses a cat with three legs.
so go back 6 years for this. Jim, am I missing something? bad eye an all?
SIMilies, not SMIlies...wow I'm dumb.
