Last night, whilst watching one of the very bad singers on the first episode of American Idol 6.0, The Daughter uncorked this bit of metaphoric wisdom:
“She sounds like a violin being played by a rock.”
Suddenly I fear that she will end up being the famous writer in the family.
Agreed, since apparently you can’t tell the difference between a metaphor and a simile. Score!!
Score!!
Au contraire, piston-puss! “A simile, also called an open comparison, is a form of metaphor that compares two different things to create a new meaning.”
Fair enough, although with that attitude, you might as well say, “Flower is a flower is a flower is a flower.”
Or, in terms of test taking, you get to choose one answer for the phrase you typed:
A. Simile
B. Metaphor
Which is the most correct answer?
Ah, but in your original comment, you were claiming victory on the basis of correct vs incorrect, not correct vs. more correct. So you’re claiming victory by means of moving the goalposts!
Of course “simile” is more specific than “metaphor”, but would that additional level of specificity have enhanced my original post? Obviously not, since what’s interesting here is the sonic imagery of “a violin being played by a rock”, and not the specific type of speech figure she employed in making her comparison.
To put it another way: her focus in her math class right now is subtraction. Thus, when she’s doing her homework and The Wife asks, “What is she working on?” I’m obviously more correct if I reply, “She’s working on her differences” as opposed to simply saying “She’s working on her math.” But the latter is totally adequate as far as conveying the information that is being sought.
So you’re basically being the guy who, when told that an acquaintance has just visited the zoo, demands the Latin taxonomic nomenclature of each animal seen!
SCORE!!!
Aw hell, that was just a damned funny comment. And an apt one as well, considering that’s how most of them sound.
Wow. The comments are more cerebral than the posts. Does that qualify as irony?