Religion (simile)
In Chapter 12, Joe speaks with George Pocock, a shell builder. During the conversation, George compares the passion some have for rowing with religious devotion. "Pocock paused and stepped back from the frame of the shell and put his hands on his hips, carefully studying the work he had so far done. He said for him the craft of building a boat was like a religion" (215). The comparison is important because it highlights the idea that many people in the 20th century were obsessed with the sport. It also shows with how much respect some were treating the sport and the lengths to which they were willing to go to participate in it.
Mushroom (metaphor)
"But he had always stressed that sometimes the solution wasn't where people ordinarily expect it to be, that you might have to look in unexpected places and think in new and creative ways to find the answers you were looking for. He remembered the mushrooms on the rotten logs in Boulder City. He could survive on his own, he figured, if he just kept his wits about him, if he kept his eyes open for opportunities, and if he didn't allow his life to be dictated by other people's notions of what he should do" (59). Following the years after Joe was abandoned by his father, he had to learn how to survive on his own. He worked various odd jobs to have enough money to feed himself and when he had no money, he would go looking for food on the mountain or go fishing. In a sense, Joe was like a mushroom because he quickly adapted to a new environment and was not easily discouraged. He always found the means to survive, no matter how hard it was.
Dust Bowl (metaphor)
The Dust Bowl is used in the novel as a metaphor for hardship. When the event happened, the country was already struggling to provide its citizens with work and the basic things to survive. The Dust Bowl made things even worst because it ruined the crops all over the country. Thus, the event is used both as a metaphor and as an argument to prove that the situation can always become worse in the future.
Drilling (metaphor)
During the summer holiday after his sophomore year, Joe decided to work at the dam to earn money to sustain himself financially through another college year. While at the dam, Joe learned how to drill holes into the mountain and how to break an apparent unbreakable material. Joe’s ability to do that is a metaphor used for his will to persevere and for his strong will.
