The wind howled. Lightning stabbed at the earth erratically, like an inefficient assassin. Thunder rolled back and forth across the dark, rain-lashed hills.
The night was as black as the inside of a cat. It was the kind of night, you could believe, on which gods moved men as though they were pawns on the chessboard of fate. In the middle of this elemental storm a fire gleamed among the dripping furze bushes like the madness in a weasel's eye. It illuminated three hunched figures. As the cauldron bubbled an eldritch voice shrieked: "When shall we three meet again?"
There was a pause.
Finally another voice said, in far more ordinary tones: "Well, I can do next Thursday."
I grew up on transformative work. The media's done, the show's over, and I will jump over to fan content. With my worldview and upbringing, alterrealities and multiverses are par the course. I've never seen canon as the One Truth.
It's just the one that got captured and put on the big screen, in major text, or in a huge stage play. Any form of published media, really. They are also for dramatics, focusing on the big moments, the impactful moments. Even the slice-of-life sort can be a bit like that. They transform themselves as well, or they couldn't even agree with themselves. Plot holes, hello?
"Canon" feels oddly heavy for a fictionfolk. A sort of rulebook, things to abide by, expectations to follow. Sometimes it's a chain in the form of guidance. After all, how are we to discover ourselves without some hint and clue? And isn't it convenient that it's all laid out in the form of "canon" events?
Probably ties a bit back to other alterhuman that have an earthen counterpart. You got something to work with, a template, more of a hint on where you can find more about yourself or your identity. But just like the issue with canon-compliant fictionfolk, there is a possibility that you come away, binding your own foot.
They really don't need to be put on a pedestal.
Identity is a fluid thing; it is also something that we have to discover and grow into. We came from culture, tradition, and history, and they gave us something to work with; they shouldn't be the frame that boxes us forever.
Either way, back to us. None of us are "canon compliant"; canon is just a suggestion, really. We are our own people, our experiences are unique to us, we are living, and we grow.
I had to figure out that my Naruto (hearttype) was from a timeline where he never grew up with Konoha. He was part of a nomadic Uzushio village-on-the-move. Even if at one point I had looked for ramen as if it's expected that I should like it. I don't hate it, and maybe my Naruto just didn't have that history with ramen. Granted, some fans like to headcanon that the Uzumaki really likes ramen, and I enjoyed that headcanon myself. Still, it's not my experience with my hearttype.
Stellus, the dream dragons' vaguelink, was never anywhere near the battlefield of Runeterra. But before finding Stellus, we had first looked to Aurelion Sol. There were awkward bits of moments where we thought we had to embrace the haughty draconic superiority ASol exudes on screen, but we didn't feel like that.
I'm skipping over Pokemon (paraarchetrope, vague-simile) and Digimon (vaguelink); the worlds themselves already have allowance for many universes and their many possibilities and divergencies. Heck, even singular universes have variations.
Lady is a greyscale rainicorn amongst many other rainbow colored rainicorns; the Celestial Duo's story came with so many possibilities, and had come here after the event of their show's first season. They even have multiple canons of their own that come in different formats. We don't really know what's up with Daisuki, but Digimon, enough said.
Does make things messy, however, especially when some of us do engage with our own source fan content on a regular basis. But hey, quite used to that we are, fumbling about in the dark, trying everything and then creating some, figuring out ourselves along the way.
Analogy - shows how two things are alike, but with the ultimate goal of making a point about this comparison.
The purpose of an analogy is not merely to show, but also to explain.
For this reason, an analogy is more complex than a simile or a metaphor, which aim only to show without explaining.
Similes and metaphors can be used to make an analogy, but usually analogies have additional information to get their point across.
Types of Analogy
In writing, there are two predominant types of analogies:
Analogies that identify identical relationships. The modern word “analogy” actually comes from the ancient Greek word for “proportionality,” and Greek scholars used analogies to directly illustrate similar relationships between two pairs of words, often for the purpose of logical argument. These analogies take the form “A is to B as C is to D.” An example of an analogy that identifies an identical relationship is “Black is to white as on is to off.” In this example, the relationship between black and white (that they’re antonyms, or opposites) is exactly comparable to the relationship between on and off (on and off are also opposites).
Analogies that identify shared abstraction. This type of analogy compares two things that are technically unrelated, in order to draw comparisons between an attribute or pattern they share. For instance, consider the analogy, “Raising children is like gardening—nurture them and be patient.” This example compares the pattern that is similar in both raising children and gardening. This type of analogy is useful in writing because it can help make abstract ideas (like raising children) more concrete by drawing on readers’ background knowledge of familiar images (like gardening).
How to Write a Good Analogy
In writing, analogy can be useful to explain an unfamiliar concept or idea. Using an analogy to link this idea to something that is familiar can help the reader better comprehend what you’re trying to say. It’s also a catchy and clever way to help get a point across. To write a good analogy, keep these points in mind:
Try to create easy-to-understand imagery. If you’re trying to explain to your reader how one thing is similar to another, you have to make sure the example you’re using is common and easily understood. The point of an analogy is to encourage deeper thought, and that won’t work if the readers are unfamiliar with the image you’re conjuring.
Work to compare and contrast. Think about the idea you’re trying to get across. When trying to find something commonplace to compare it to, think about possible connections between the two things—both similarities and differences. Which evokes the most powerful image? Which will be able to set up the comparison the clearest?
Think of ways to inspire. The best analogies both explain and inspire. As a literary device, an analogy is a powerful way to communicate a message. However, it can also turn an idea into a vivid image in the reader’s mind that will stick long after they’ve finished reading.
Example of an Analogy
Consider this analogy, meant to communicate futility:
“What you’re doing is as useful as rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.”
Here, the speaker is using a simile to compare the task being done to the task of rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. But, the ultimate goal is not just to compare one task to another, it is to communicate that the first task is useless—by comparing it to a similarly useless task, such as rearranging deck chairs on a ship that famously sank into the sea on its maiden voyage.
Examples of Analogy in Literature
Both of these analogy examples demonstrate the deft use of comparison to serve a higher purpose.
William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet (1597). “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other word would smell as sweet. So Romeo would, were he not Romeo called.” Here, Shakespeare is using Juliet’s words to compare Romeo to a rose. The implication is that in her eyes, Romeo’s last name doesn’t change who he is, or what he is—the same way that calling a rose by any other name doesn’t change its intrinsic characteristics.
Analogies can also be less logical, instead trying to create a mood with the comparison:
George Orwell, “A Hanging” (1931). “They crowded very close about him, with their hands always on him in a careful, caressing grip, as though all the while feeling him to make sure he was there. It was like men handling a fish which is still alive and may jump back into the water.” Here, Orwell makes a comparison between a dead man and a fish. What he is trying to evoke is not a new idea, but a sense of the supernatural, by suggesting that at any moment the man could come back to life and wriggle out of the crowd’s hands.
Analogy, Simile, Metaphor
While analogies, similes, and metaphors are closely related because they are all used to compare different things, here are some tips to help you distinguish between these three figures of speech:
A simile is saying something is like something else. For example, “Life is like a box of chocolates.”
A metaphor is often poetically saying something is something else. For example, “Life is a box of chocolates.”
An analogy is saying something is like something else to make some sort of explanatory point. For example, “Life is like a box of chocolates—you never know what you’re gonna get.”
You can use metaphors and similes when creating an analogy.
A simile is a type of metaphor. All similes are metaphors, but not all metaphors are similes.
More Examples of Analogies in Speech & Writing
Many analogies are so useful that they are part of everyday speech. These are often known as figures of speech or idioms. Each analogy below makes a comparison between two things:
Finding a good man is like finding a needle in a haystack: As Dusty Springfield knows, finding a small needle in a pile of hay takes a long time, so the task at hand is likely to be hard and tedious.
That's as useful as rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic: It looks like you're doing something helpful but really it will make no difference in the end.
Explaining a joke is like dissecting a frog. You understand it better but the frog dies in the process: E.B White's famous analogy shows that sometimes it's better not to know too much.
That movie was a roller coaster ride of emotions: While you're not flying through the air, the twists, turns and surprises of a movie plot can leave you feeling like you've been through quite an experience.
Life is like a box of chocolates - you never know what you're gonna get: An often-used analogy from Forrest Gump shows that life has many choices and surprises, just like a box of chocolates.
Writers use many forms of analogies in their work to make a comparison that is memorable and helps the reader better understand their point. Consider these examples of analogies from famous writers and public figures:
"I am to dancing what Roseanne is to singing and Donald Duck to motivational speeches. I am as graceful as a refrigerator falling down a flight of stairs." - Leonard Pitts, "Curse of Rhythm Impairment" Miami Herald, Sep. 28, 2009.
"If you want my final opinion on the mystery of life and all that, I can give it to you in a nutshell. The universe is like a safe to which there is a combination. But the combination is locked up in the safe." - Peter De Vries, Let Me Count the Ways.
"Writing a book of poetry is like dropping a rose petal down the Grand Canyon and waiting for the echo." - Don Marquis.
"They crowded very close about him, with their hands always on him in a careful, caressing grip, as though all the while feeling him to make sure he was there. It was like men handling a fish which is still alive and may jump back into the water." - George Orwell, "A Hanging."
"... worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum." - Baz Luhrmann, "Everybody's Free (to Wear Sunscreen)."
Examples of Word Analogies
You will find word analogies, or verbal analogies, used in standardized tests and sometimes in job interviews where you must show the relationship between two objects or concepts using logic and reasoning. These analogies are set up in a standard format. For example:
tree : leaf :: flower : petal
This analogy is read aloud as:
Tree is to leaf as flower is to petal.
This analogy highlights the relationship between the whole (a tree and a flower) and its parts (a leaf and a petal). On tests of logic, one portion of the analogy is left blank and students are left to choose an answer that makes sense to complete the comparison. For example:
dog : puppy :: cat : _______
To solve the analogy, you must first determine the relationship between dog and puppy. Once you realize that a puppy is a baby dog, you can find the corresponding relationship for a cat. A baby cat is a kitten, so the completed analogy is:
Dog : puppy :: cat : kitten
Though there is no limit to the possibilities when it comes to word analogies, here are some examples to familiarize yourself with the concept:
hammer : nail :: comb : hair
white : black :: up : down
mansion : shack :: yacht : dinghy
chef : food :: sculptor : stone
like : love :: dislike : hate
Examples of Similes
As sly as a fox
As stubborn as a mule
As blind as a bat
Crazy like a fox
Quick like a cat
Examples of Metaphors
You are the wind beneath my wings.
He is a diamond in the rough.
Life is a roller coaster with lots of ups and downs.
just a-sittin' there in a white gown and her eyes looking at me and a great long slit under her chin just as clean as a catfish gill!—Oh, God-amighty!—and her hair wavin' lazy and soft around her like meadow grass under flood waters. The Night of the Hunter by Davis Grubb, 1953
Shelley Winters finds another place in the sun dead in the water exquisitely memorialized by aquatic gothic cinematography of Stanley Cortez for The Night of The Hunter dir. Charles Laughton, 1955
морозко dir. Aleksandr Rou, 1965 | Solaris dir. Andrei Tarkovsky, 1972 | Nymphomaniac dir. Lars Von Trier, 2014 | The House That Jack Built dir. Lars Von Trier, 2018
