Chronic fatigue
After Maxon leaves her at the stairs, Lady America's fatigue is so intense that she compares it to a wall. The use of the simile thus facilitates the reader's understanding of her chronic fatigue while also enhancing the situation's imagery. She notes: "As Maxon left me at the stairs, the tiredness hit me like a wall."
Like an apparition
The image of Gregory is made explicit through its comparison to an apparition. Comparing this picture of Gregory Illea to an apparition alludes to its mysterious nature. The narrator notes: "And there, like an apparition, an image from an unknown past showed Gregory Illéa with a tight expression on his face, his suit crisp and his stance tall."
Like a blind moose
Lady America's image as she prances around her room is made explicit via the employment of a simile in which her prancing around the room is compared to that of a blind moose. The narrator states: "I pranced around the room like a blind moose, but what I lacked in grace I made up for in effort."
The spread out hands of Lady America's father
As Lady America's father retires to his room, he wonders aloud 'how best not to fall into a hatch' with his arms out. The narrator uses a simile to present the posture of his arms, comparing them to a shield. The narrator notes: "…he wondered aloud, spreading his arms out like a protective shield as he walked."
Marlee's whimper
The imagery of Marlee's whimper is enhanced through its comparison to that of a dog. The narrator notes: "I saw the cane fall on Marlee's hands. She let out the most pathetic whimper, like a dog that had been kicked." The simile's use enhances the reader's conception of the pain associated with the cane landing on Marlee's hand.
