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Setting
Definition of Simile
A simile is a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things. To make the comparison, similes most often use the connecting words "like" or "as," but can also... read full definition
A simile is a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things. To make the comparison, similes most often use the connecting words "like... read full definition
A simile is a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things. To make the comparison, similes most often... read full definition
Chapter 3
Explanation and Analysis—Dead Mouse:
In this passage, the author uses a simile to illustrate the difference between pleasant surprises and horrifying revelations. As Bruno thinks about the effects of nice discoveries as opposed to unpleasant ones, he muses:
Some things are just sitting there, minding their own business, waiting to be discovered. Like America. And other things are probably better off left alone. Like a dead mouse at the back of a cupboard.
The simile "like a dead mouse at the back of a cupboard" conveys Bruno’s realization that some truths, once uncovered, can be very disturbing. The repulsive shock of finding something decayed and hidden is “better off left alone,” as it can only make things worse for the person who finds it. Moreover, fiinding a dead mouse in the back of a cupboard might taint one’s feelings about everything the cupboard contains. The comparison the simile makes shows Bruno’s disgust at the idea of discovering a “mouse,” but it also calls to mind the unsettling permanence of having encountered its corpse. Once a mouse is discovered at the back of a cupboard, it can’t be un-discovered. Some revelations are unsettlingly permanent.
Conversely, Bruno’s mention of America as "just sitting there, minding [its] own business" implies that Bruno equates the "discovery" of America with excitement and a sense of adventurousness. For Bruno, America represents the abstract idea of a new and interesting thing, something untouched and brimming with potential. Unlike a “dead mouse” or something else unpleasant, Bruno feels “discovering” America would be a comparatively good thing. At this point in the novel Bruno is beginning to sense that there are some things about his life at "Out-with" that, if he dug too deep, might feel more like discovering a mouse than discovering America.
Related Themes:
