14 Sound Similes Evaluating Figurative Comparisons

In writing thats cluttered with clichà ©s, loud noises predictably sound like thunder, while sweet voices are likened to honey, angels, or bells. But in writing thats fresh and daring, unfamiliar comparisons may sometimes surprise, delight, or enlighten us. This doesnt mean that all original similes are effective. A far-fetched comparison may strike some readers as more distracting than revealing, more puzzling than entertaining. Ultimately, of course, how we respond to a figure of speech is largely a matter of taste. Drawn from recent works of fiction and nonfiction, these 14 similes about sounds should help you determine your taste in figurative language. Read each passage aloud, and then identify the similes that you think are particularly creative, insightful, or humorous. In contrast, which ones leave you bored, annoyed, or confused? Be prepared to compare your responses with those of your friends or classmates. 14 Sound Similes to Discover   Welshmen SingingWelshmen like Mr. Davis put great stock in Welsh singing, but to my Irish ears it sounds like men jumping off chairs into a bathtub full of frogs.(P.J. ORourke, The Welsh National Combined Mud Wrestling and Spelling Bee Championship. Age and Guile, Beat Youth, Innocence, and a Bad Haircut. Atlantic Monthly Press, 1995)Branches Scratching Against a WindowThe floorboards creaked in the room where Rain used to be, and the branches of the cherry tree in the front yard near Edgar Allan Poes grave swayed in the wind. They scratched against the glass with a soft tap, tap, tap. It sounded like a lizards paws. Then it sounded like a serpents tongue. Then it sounded like five weak fingers rapping on the windowpane, the same gentle fingers that used to comb and braid Alices hair.(Lisa Dierbeck, One Pill Makes You Smaller. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2003)The Winner of the Eurovision Song ContestNobody knows what Edward II sounded like when he sang, but now the whole world knows w hat Conchita sounds like. She, or he, sounds like incoming artillery. One hundred and eighty million people in 45 countries were blown sideways by the uproar emanating from a young woman pretending to be Russell Brand, or perhaps it was Russell Brand pretending to be a young woman.(Clive James, Conchitas Voice Sounded Like Incoming Artillery. The Telegraph, May 17, 2014)A SneezeWithout warning, Lionel gave one of his tight little sneezes: it sounded like a bullet fired through a silencer.(Martin Amis, Lionel Asbo: State of England. Alfred A. Knopf, 2012)A BoyFor all his roughness and arrogance, the boy was transformed when he was in the presence of girls. He spoke in a voice as soft as the silken filaments that float out of a cocoon.(Carol Field, Mangoes and Quince. Bloomsbury, 2001)The Invisible NoiseDuring other sessions, Ive told her about the noise. The invisible noise that only I can hear—a noise that sounds like the mumbling of a million broken voices saying nothing at all or the hum of the wind through an open car window at seventy miles per hour. I can even see the noise sometimes. It circles above people like a clear vulture with sparks of electricity in its wings—hovering dangerously above their heads before swooping down.(Brian James, Life Is But a Dream. Feiwel Friends, 2012)Hoofbeats, Sabers, and ShotsThe street was alive with them, hollow-eyed and faceless astride coal-black horses, their muffled hoofbeats sounding like rapid shots miles away. Only these sounds were right here and I was in the midst of them. Sabers whistled. Once I heard a noise like a cooks cleaver striking half-boiled meat, a nauseating sound. Then there were real shots, hard and sharp, like derisive coughs, and metal-gray smoke that mingled with the white vapor exhaled by the horses.(Loren D. Estleman, Murdocks Law, 1982)Bob DylanEveryone who heard it—even the people who said that Dylan sounded like a dog with his leg trapped in barbed wire—knew Bo b Dylan was a phenomenon.(Lewis Macadams, Birth Of The Cool. The Free Press, 2001)Leonard CohenIt is a penitents voice, a rabbinical voice, a crust of unleavened vocal toast--spread with smoke and subversive wit. He has a voice like a carpet in an old hotel, like a bad itch on the hunchback of love.(Tom Robbins, Leonard Cohen. Wild Ducks Flying Backward. Bantam, 2005)The Reverberations of Train HornsWhen the train horns sounded and then were quiet, there were pure reverberations up and down the river that sounded like a plucked harp string or a piano note sustained by holding down a pedal.(Mark Knudsen, Old Man River and Me: One Mans Journey Down the Mighty Mississippi. Thomas Nelson, 1999)Cello MusicIt isnt music Louise has ever heard before. It sounds like a lullaby, and then it sounds like a pack of wolves, and then it sounds like a slaughterhouse, and then it sounds like a motel room and a married man saying I love you and the shower is running at the same time. It makes her tee th ache and her heart rattle.(Kelly Link, Louises Ghost. Poes Children: The New Horror, ed. by Peter Straub. Doubleday, 2008)Lyle FilbenderI took a deep breath and started to speak. I cant remember half of what I said, but I do know that I was at least a million times more inspiring than Lyle Filbender. He sounded like a defective robot in need of a battery change and had to be reprimanded twice for calling the Missions clients bums.(Maureen Fergus, Exploits of a Reluctant (but Extremely Goodlooking) Hero. Kids Can Press, 2007)A Voice on the PhoneCarl reached for the phone, his gut tightening. Even before he heard the voice on the other end, he suspected—no, knew—it would be him. You did real well, the voice said, a voice like dry leaves rustling down a sidewalk.(J. Michael Straczynski, We Killed Them in the Ratings. Blowout in Little Man Flats, ed. by Billie Sue Mosiman and Martin Greenberg. Rutledge Hill, 1998)Chains at the ForgeRails suspended overhead, from which b lack chains hung like jungle vines that clattered through their blocks, making a tooth-rattling noise, a noise like the jabbering of a thousand jawbones in a thousand skulls.(John Griesemer, Signal and Noise. Hutchinson, 2004)

The Media And Body Image - 1453 Words

Today we know that the media and body image are closely related. Particularly, how the body image advertising portrays affects our own body image. Research documented adolescents as they are more at risk for developing unhealthy attitudes toward their bodies. They are at a time where they re focused on developing their individual identities, making them susceptible to social pressure and media images. A major reason many people have a negative body image is because of the impact that the media has had on our perception of body image. EFFECTS OF MEDIA In total, Americans spend a whopping 250 billion hours watching television every year. According to the research of California State University at Northridge, advertising accounts for†¦show more content†¦Though this is true, research shows that the media does contribute to the increase in body dissatisfaction and disordered eating. â€Å"Anorexia means ‘lack of appetite’, but in the case of the eating disorder anorexia nervosa, it is a desire to be the, rather than a lack of appetite, that causes individuals to decrease their food intake,† (Smolin and Mary Grosvenor, 76). â€Å"The name bulimia is taken from the Greek words bous (â€Å"ox†) and limos (â€Å"hunger†), denoting hunger of such intensity that a person could eat an entire ox,† (Smolin and Mary Grosvenor, 94). Eating Disorders affect 5-10 million Americans, and thousands of people die each year from their complications. Although some groups are at a greater risk than others, eating disorders occur in people of all ages, races, and socioeconomic backgrounds. We do not know what causes eating disorders, but many factors have been identified that may play a role (Smolin and Mary Grosvenor, 40). We know that eating disorders involve serious disturbances in eating behavior and extreme concern about body size or weight. We also know that eating disorders can be life-threatening if treatment is not provided or is not effective. But we do not completely understand what causes eating disorders. Generally, scientists believe they arise from a complex interaction of genetic, psychological, and sociocultural factors (Smolin and Mary Grosvenor, 42). â€Å"One study found that the average height and weight for a model isShow MoreRelatedMedia and Body Image1118 Words   |  4 PagesThe media has become a powerful source for changes in our society. There are so many factors and reasons for our society changing. Today I find most people obsessively worried about their body image. We all have a body and at one time or another, we worry about it. Women and men are both being affected by media sources such as television, advertising, magazines, music, and video games; not to mention the photo manipulation that goes along with it all. Questions can be asked; such as, â€Å"Is this theRead MoreMedia and Body Image729 Words   |  3 PagesEver wonder why more and more teenagers are having issues with their body image? As society grows, more and more young adults are becoming self-conscious about their bodies and how they look. Girls and boys alike are taught, though not verbally how they should look, from celebrities they see on TV to toys they used to play with and magazines they read on a daily basis. Media make being satisfied with how your body looks extremely difficult and it is getting out of hand. More and more young adultsRead MoreThe Media Of Body Image2000 Words   |  8 PagesOnce upon a time, you probably liked your body and appreciated the many things it could do, but the route to adulthood, doubts and insecurities may have crept in. The images the media exposures the society to are of thin and beautiful women and extremely muscular men. There are negative affects to what the media is showing the body image and mood states of young women and men. The mass media is designed to reach large audiences through the use of technology. From the moment nations wakes up untilRead MoreThe Impact Of Media On Body Image1538 Words   |  7 Pagesthe concept of body image is influenced by external factors as culture, society norms, especially with the development of modern social media, it has grown up to be an important element in affecting the perception of body image to shape the body image. The influence of mass media may be related to the social comparison process of appearance in female and male. The ideal media body image, it is easy to compare in everyday life, and that will result to dissatisfaction with people s body size. On theRead MoreMedia Vs. Body Image1374 Words   |  6 Pages029 October 17, 2015 Media vs. the body Image Body image remains to be a very controversial topic in today’s society, because of how easy it is to become a hate crime over a small comment on how small or big someone’s body is. Today, it is unavoidable to see the look that it seems society wants us to look. Professor Susan Bordo writes the article, â€Å"Never Just Pictures†, describing her investigation between the media and its effects on how people view their bodies. She uses ethos, logos, andRead MoreMedia Impact On Body Image1254 Words   |  6 Pagesimpact of media models on children’s and adolescents’ body image? Over recent times, the media has become a prominent part in the upbringing of young people. In particular the manner by which the media portrays body image has changed in numerous ways. Body image is defined as â€Å"a person’s perceptions, thoughts, and feelings about his or her body† by Grogan (as cited in Zaccagni, Masotti, Donati Gualdi-Russo, 2014). There is a stronger focus of what is considered to be the perfect body type andRead MoreThe Media and Body Image Essay990 Words   |  4 PagesMass media is designed to reach large audiences with technology. Its purpose is meant to give us entertainment and information we need to act as a society. Media is everywhere; there is no escaping from it. Almost every home in America has at least one TV, the internet, and a cell phone. You cannot drive down the street without seeing billboard signs. Checking out at the grocery store can be tricky if trying to avoid magazines. There are more forms of media available today the n ever before; consequentlyRead MoreMedia Effects On Body Image Essay1648 Words   |  7 PagesSpecific age groups and mostly women have been studied regarding media effects on body image. These studies did not test the external stimuli created by peer groups that have an impact on a person’s self-idealization. This study addressed individual age groups divided by gender in order to determine how much media effects body idealization and if gender peer group opinions impact self-idealization when viewing media models. Methods The methods used in this study incorporated individuals into groupsRead MoreThe Effects Of Media On Body Image1484 Words   |  6 Pages Media has developed to become omnipresent in the day to day lives of the westernized societies. The media is considered a gigantic umbrella that houses a plethora of different outlets underneath it such as television, music videos, magazines, commercials, video games and social media. In this paper, the effects of media and various media types are examined to understand their potential outcomes. Focusing on how and if media affects body image in girls and women, the themes of dieting awarenessRead MoreMedia Effects Body Image1656 Words   |  7 PagesApril 6, 2014 The Effects of Mass Media on African American Women Body Images Over the past 10 years, mass media and the access to social networks has evolved substantially causing the effects of negative self-image and what is considered beautiful. Body image expectations for both African-American male and female share the battles of society’s expectations, yet African American women body images come with a stricter and more unhealthy stigma; growth of social media such as Facebook, Instagram and

The Secret Circle The Hunt Chapter 1 Free Essays

Cassie held her father’s Book of Shadows in her hands and shivered. There would be no going back, her mother had said, but now she watched Cassie expectantly. The book’s gold deckle-edged pages were cinched closed with a leather string, like a soft, thin belt. We will write a custom essay sample on The Secret Circle: The Hunt Chapter 1 or any similar topic only for you Order Now Cassie pulled on it, and dust particles flew into the air as its knot came undone, but the book’s cover remained in place. â€Å"It’s not too late to change your mind,† her mother said. â€Å"Are you sure you’re ready?† Cassie nodded. If this book contained the secrets to defeating her half sister, Scarlett, and saving the Circle from the hunters, it wasn’t even a question. It was her duty to study it. She carefully fanned open the book. Its spine cracked and Cassie’s eyes seemed to meld to the page. The text scrawled upon the paper’s yellowed surface was composed of squiggly lines and archaic symbols. The curl of each brushstroke felt forbidden, like Cassie had revealed something not intended for her eyes. But before Cassie could process exactly what she was seeing, the book grew warm in her hands, and then threateningly hot. Within seconds the skin of her fingers was sizzling, and Cassie couldn’t stop herself from crying out. Her flesh adhered to the book, and she couldn’t pull her hands away despite the scorching pain. Her mother’s face was stricken with fear, but she acted fast. She raised her palm and with one wide swoop batted the book out of Cassie’s hands and onto the floor. Cassie released a whimper of relief, but the damage had been done. Her hands were singed red with throbbing, bubbling burns. She looked at her mother, terrified. â€Å"You said it was just a book.† â€Å"It was. Or I thought it was.† Her mother examined Cassie’s injuries to see how serious they were. Then she glanced at where the book had landed facedown on the wooden floor. She moved toward it cautiously, picked it up without harm, and secured it closed by tightly retying the string. â€Å"I’ll put this somewhere safe for now,† she said. â€Å"I’m sorry, Cassie. I had no idea that would happen. I’ve never seen anything like it.† â€Å"I don’t understand.† Cassie gaped at her mother, dizzy for answers. â€Å"You said I’d need this book to defeat Scarlett, but how can I study it if I can’t even hold it?† Her mother shook her head. â€Å"I don’t know. It must be spelled, to keep it from being opened by anyone other than its owner.† â€Å"Then I have to figure out how to break the spell. Scarlett is out there somewhere, and she wants to kill me. That book is my only hope against her.† Her mother raised her hand to halt Cassie’s anxious stream of consciousness. â€Å"One thing at a time. Our first priority is to tend to those burns. I think you’ve had enough excitement for one night.† She gave Cassie’s shoulder a quick, loving squeeze, and then she ushered the book out of sight. When she returned with an armful of gauze and ointment, Cassie’s mind was racing with new questions and concern for her friends who’d been marked by the hunters. â€Å"Faye’s and Laurel’s lives might depend on me opening that book,† Cassie said. â€Å"I have to try again.† Her mother sat beside her looking forlorn. â€Å"Faye and Laurel are in grave danger.† She reached for Cassie’s hands and began dressing the wounds. â€Å"But there are two steps to the process of witch hunters killing a witch: They catch you doing magic and you’re marked, and only then can they perform the killing curse. If we can stop the hunters from performing the second step, your friends will be okay.† The killing curse. Cassie remembered the hunter mark, the aftermath of the curse on Melanie’s aunt Constance’s forehead the day she died. The Circle hadn’t even known the hunters had marked her until it was too late. â€Å"Why don’t the hunters just perform the killing curse immediately after marking someone?† Cassie asked. â€Å"Why wait?† â€Å"Because it takes just one hunter to mark someone, but the killing curse requires several of them.† Cassie’s mother wrapped the burns quickly and efficiently, like a battlefield nurse. â€Å"It’s a process, much like a spell, so it can’t just happen at any moment.† Cassie winced as the harsh gauze touched her raw skin. â€Å"So Faye and Laurel will need to be protected,† her mother said. â€Å"But tonight, the only thing for you to do is rest.† Cassie nodded. She still had so many questions, but the pain was making her weary. She moved to the comfort of her own bed and felt her eyes grow heavy. She allowed them to close as sleep overtook her. But even in the soft dark of her own eyelids, Cassie could see the glowing outline of her father’s book shining against the black. The next morning, Cassie’s mind was still running in circles while she waited on her front porch for Adam to pick her up for school. She tried to relax, to admire the sun glinting red off the windows of each house on the bluff, but there was too much to be anxious about. In the past week Cassie had learned that her half sister wanted to kill her and take over the Circle – and she’d nearly succeeded. They’d had a confrontation in Cape Cod, and Cassie had chased Scarlett away, but she’d escaped with the Master Tools. As if that weren’t enough, there was also the issue of the hunters. The Circle was now sure that Max and his father – Principal Boylan – were witch hunters. They’d already marked Laurel and Faye with the hunter symbol, and it was possible they knew the identities of all the Circle members. Cassie looked down at the gray paint peeling off the front porch. This old house, she thought, this antiquated town. There was no escaping its ancient history. It was a sunny, windless day, but how could Cassie enjoy it? She pulled the sleeves of her purple hoodie down over her hands to cover her burns. She would have disappeared entirely into its soft cotton if she could. And then she heard something – a rustling in the bushes. It’s just the breeze, she told herself, but not a single blade of grass stirred. There was the crunching of leaves. It was coming from her left, along the row of shrubs that lined the path to the house’s side door – an opportune place for an intruder to break in, or for Scarlett to sneak her way into Cassie’s home. Treading lightly across the rickety wooden porch, Cassie stepped closer to the sound. The shrubs moved again – this time she saw it with her own eyes – and she screamed, â€Å"Scarlett!† An orange tabby cat shot out from the wavering hedge, zipping past Cassie and up a neighbor’s tree. The cat’s prey was left behind in the uncut grass: a sorry-looking field mouse. Cassie exhaled. She would have laughed out loud at herself if she weren’t so embarrassed. She walked back around to the front porch just as Adam pulled up to the curb. Her heart hadn’t yet returned to its regular rhythm when she climbed into the passenger seat of his old Mustang and leaned over for a kiss. â€Å"What were you doing in the backyard?† Adam asked as he pulled out of her driveway and onto Crowhaven Road. â€Å"Running laps? You’re all sweaty.† â€Å"Is that any way to greet your girlfriend?† Cassie joked. â€Å"By telling her she’s perspiring?† Adam smiled. â€Å"I’m just saying you look hot, that’s all. Hot and humid.† He waited for her to laugh, and when she didn’t he tilted his head at her apologetically. Cassie appreciated Adam’s sense of humor, even when he was teasing her. No matter how dire the situation was with the hunters and with Scarlett, Adam was still able to make light of things. Cassie needed that now more than ever. She focused on the sparkle in his blue-gray eyes and thought of the silver cord, that mystifying bond that connected Adam’s soul to hers. What did it mean that she’d also seen a cord connecting Adam to Scarlett on the night of their battle? Could she have imagined it? Cassie could hardly think about it. She reached for Adam’s free hand and interlaced her fingers with his. â€Å"Is that from the fire in Cape Cod?† Adam asked. He lifted Cassie’s sleeve up, revealing the blistering spots on her left hand. â€Å"I didn’t realize how bad these were before. Are they getting worse?† Cassie remained silent, unsure of how to explain these new marks on her body, but her silence only misled Adam to believe he’d been correct about their source. â€Å"We have to find Scarlett,† he said. â€Å"She has to pay for this and everything else she’s done.† Cassie still didn’t know what to say; the situation was much more complicated than that. â€Å"How can you sit there so calmly?† He took his eyes off the road to momentarily glance at Cassie. â€Å"You’ve been physically, and most likely permanently, scarred by her. We can’t let her get away with this.† â€Å"These burns aren’t from my battle with Scarlett,† Cassie said, more abruptly than she’d meant to. â€Å"They’re from last night.† Adam slowed the car almost to a stop. â€Å"Last night? What happened last night?† Cassie watched a crowded school bus zip past them on the left. Behind them, a frustrated tailgater honked his horn. â€Å"I don’t want to keep any secrets from you,† she said. â€Å"But if I tell you something, I need it to stay between us.† Adam pulled over to the side of the road and cut the engine, sensing this would require his full attention. â€Å"I think it goes without saying by this point, but you can trust me.† They were stopped in front of Sprinkles Donut Shop, and the air smelled like sugar and frosting. â€Å"My mother gave me something last night. Something that had been hidden in my grandmother’s house for a long time,† Cassie said, and then paused. She knew she could tell Adam anything and he wouldn’t judge her, but it was still difficult getting the words out. â€Å"Don’t tell me there are more Master Tools we didn’t know about. That would be incredible.† Adam’s voice was hopeful in a way that made Cassie’s heart break. â€Å"No. But it is something that belonged to Black John.† Adam’s posture straightened at the sound of Black John’s name and he sat icily still. â€Å"I have his Book of Shadows,† Cassie said. She watched Adam’s expression turn from apprehensive to excited. â€Å"Are you serious?† he shouted. â€Å"Do you realize how much we can learn from that book?† â€Å"There’s more,† Cassie said, before Adam could get carried away. â€Å"When I opened it, it was like the book turned against me, like it was alive in my hands. Just like when the Master Tools backfired on me when I was battling Scarlett.† Adam nodded, remembering how the Tools had obeyed Scarlett’s black magic. They’d singed Cassie’s skin just before they unhinged themselves from her body and flew at Scarlett’s outstretched hands. â€Å"That explains the burns,† he said. â€Å"But what’s the connection between the two?† â€Å"I think the book is spelled,† Cassie said. â€Å"Something to prevent the wrong people from getting a hold of it. But it wasn’t like I could read it anyway. It’s written in some ancient language I’ve never seen before. It doesn’t even look like words.† â€Å"We should have Diana search her Book of Shadows for information.† Adam immediately went into strategizing mode. â€Å"There must be a way to break the book’s spell. And we can all start researching the language. There’s a chance it could be Sumerian, or even cuneiform. Black John’s ancestors would go back that far.† â€Å"Adam,† Cassie interrupted him. â€Å"Remember you agreed we could keep this between us?† Adam’s face dropped. He looked away momentarily. â€Å"But that was before I knew what it was.† â€Å"I’m sorry,† Cassie said. â€Å"But I need to understand more of what this is before involving the rest of the Circle. This is about me and my father.† â€Å"It’s a pretty big deal.† Adam’s voice hit that pitch it always did when he was exasperated. â€Å"We have to tell the Circle eventually.† â€Å"I know,† Cassie said as gently as she could. She reminded herself that Adam’s passion and perseverance were her favorite things about him. â€Å"I just need a little time.† She fiddled with the few strands of reddish-brown hair that had fallen in front of his eyes. â€Å"For now, let this be our secret.† Adam nodded, realizing he was pushing too hard. â€Å"Okay. But in the meantime I want to help in any way I can. I’ll do research, whatever you need. Just name it.† Cassie felt her shoulders settle. â€Å"Thank you,† she said, reaching out to him. â€Å"For now, all I need is your support.† â€Å"Always.† Adam brought Cassie’s injured hand to his warm lips and kissed it. â€Å"I also need a chocolate glazed donut from Sprinkles,† Cassie added. â€Å"Your wish is my command.† Adam leaned in, met Cassie’s lips with his own, and kissed her without restraint. It felt good, and it felt right. Maybe there was hope for this day yet. How to cite The Secret Circle: The Hunt Chapter 1, Essay examples