Steve was like science a fiction
Buttigieg uses a simile to bring out Steve’s imaginative and futuristic ability in terms of predicting the future. He says: “Steve, my roommate, was like a science fiction telepath; he could dissect social interactions and predict with remarkable accuracy how the relationships among other freshmen we knew would play out with time” The simile thus emphasizes on Steve’s predictive ability by likening them to those of a Sci-fi movie.
The concept of disorderly liquidation
“To me, “disorderly liquidation” sounded like a cartoon whirlpool, with cars and workers waving their arms for help in the downward spiral toward the drain.” The comparison of the concept of disorderly liquidation to a cartoon whirlpool thus enables the reader’s perception of its perceived (negative) effects.
The imagery of the city from Buttigieg’s office
The dense appearance of thea from the fourteenth floor of Buttigieg’s office is enhanced through the use of a simile. The perception is evoked through the city’s comparison to a forest. Buttigieg notes: “From my office on the fourteenth floor, most of the city looks like a forest.”a
The landing falcon
The imagery of the landing peregrine falcon is brought out through the direct comparison of the same to a fighter landing on an aircraft carrier. The narrator’s use of the simile facilitates the perception of the landing as quite vicious. Buttigieg notes: “At eye-level out the window, a peregrine falcon swoops into view […] and slows to alight on the roof, like a fighter landing on an aircraft carrier.”
Civilization
The idea of civilization and particularly its ‘glamor’ as perceived by Danforth is brought out through the use of a simile. Danforth is of the idea that civilizing the wild and savage lands would “make them like the image of heaven on earth.”
