Tropes of Comparison
Figures that create meaning by comparing one thing to another, either explicitly or implicitly.
8 figures across 2 subcategories
Direct Comparison
Figures that draw an explicit or implicit likeness between two unlike things.
A is B — direct identity claim between unlike things
An implicit comparison that states one thing is another, transferring qualities without using 'like' or 'as'.
A is like B / A as B — comparison with explicit marker
An explicit comparison between two unlike things using 'like', 'as', or similar connectives.
A:B :: C:D — proportional extended comparison
An extended comparison explaining one thing in terms of another to clarify or persuade, often using proportional reasoning.
Extended surprising A=B — elaborately sustained unlikely metaphor
An elaborate, extended, and often surprising metaphor comparing two strikingly dissimilar things, developed at length across a passage or entire work.
Impossible or mixed metaphor — technically wrong but expressively right
A strained, deliberately inappropriate, or paradoxical metaphor; using a word in a way that is technically incorrect but expressively powerful, or applying a term where no proper term exists.
Attribution of Life or Presence
Figures that give human qualities to non-human entities or address absent things as present.
Non-human + human action — inanimate given life
Attribution of human characteristics, emotions, or behavior to non-human things, animals, or abstract concepts.
O [absent/abstract], ... — direct address to the absent
Directly addressing an absent person, a dead person, an abstract concept, or an inanimate object as if it were present and capable of responding.
Sustained A=B narrative — entire story as extended metaphor
An extended metaphor in which characters, events, or settings represent abstract ideas or moral qualities, creating a parallel narrative.