Like Vultures Robbed of Their Young
"Like vultures robbed of their young, the agony sends them frenzied, soaring high from the nest ... but all the labour, the bed of pain, the young are lost forever." - Chorus (Agamemnon, ln 54-60)
This simile describes the great heroes of Greece, Menelaus and Agamemnon, as well as their armies, as they go to war against Troy in the efforts to retrieve Menelaus's wife, Helen, who was stolen by the Trojan prince Paris. This comparison is especially apt, however, because it also accurately describes Clytemnestra, who was robbed of her "young" (Iphigenia, her daughter), and has become frenzied with agony, plotting to murder the sacrificer, her husband, Agamemnon. The simile is also fitting because, like the vultures' young, Iphigenia is "lost forever," and nothing Clytemnestra can do can bring her back.
A Glance Like Arrows
"...her glance like arrows showering, wounding every murderer through with pity clear as a picture..." - Chorus (Agamemnon, ln 238-40)
In this simile, the Chorus is describing the sacrifice of Iphigenia, whom Agamemnon killed in order to receive favorable winds for his fleet from Athena before setting out for the Trojan War. Iphigenia's glance is likened to "arrows showering," symbolically killing all of her executioners. This comparison is especially apt because this incident is essentially the one that killed her father, Agamemnon; his decision causes Clytemnestra to kill him in vengeance.
Stories Like Wildfire
"So gullible. Their stories spread like wildfire, they fly fast and die faster; rumours voiced by women come to nothing." - Chorus (Agamemnon, ln 476-78)
In this simile, a member of the Chorus is comparing the rumors flying about the signal fires to a wildfire: they spread around quickly and die out even more quickly. This comparison serves to heighten the anxious tension about what the signal fire represents, which the reader discovers means that the Greeks have won the Trojan War.
Tears Like Winter Rains
“Tears come like the winter rains that flood the gates -
can’t hold them back, when I see this lock of hair.” - Electra (The Libation Bearers)
At this point in The Libation Bearers, Electra has discovered a conveniently placed lock of Orestes's hair, which alerts her to the fact that he has returned. This realization causes her to cry with joy, with tears falling like winter rain, a simile that poetically increases the emotional aspect of the scene.
Like a Vicious Dog in a Dark Cell
“You tell him of father’s death, but I was an outcast,
worthless, leashed like a vicious dog in a dark cell." - Electra (The Libation Bearers)
In this scene, Electra is catching Orestes up on all that has happened in his absence. While he was forced into exile, she was forced to live like a slave, being bound and "leashed" by her mother to keep her under tight control under the pretences of family bonds. This abuse contributes to Electra's desire to conspire with Orestes against their mother, Clytemnestra, whom Orestes eventually kills.
