Metaphor for hope
Parrado says "I'm going to see the green grass". Here, the green grass acts as a metaphor for his hope for surviving and returning home. The grass represents hope and life, in contrast to the monotonous snow on the Andes mountain range.
Metaphor for achievement
Parrado also says"I've climbed one of the highest mountains in the Andes". This is a metaphor for his huge struggle to survive, and the sense of triumph and achievement he feels having survived.
Metaphor for horror
When Canessa first eats dead human flesh, he is described as being very reluctant: "Even with his mind so firmly made up, the horror of the act paralysed him." The shocking and disgusting nature of the act is so powerful is metaphorically paralyses him.
Metaphor for determination
Parrado is described in the following passage: "As he regained his strength there grew within him a lunatic determination to escape." Although Parrado is not actually a lunatic, this becomes a metaphor for the frenzy he is in, and his strong desire to survive.
