The simile of the rectangular table
The shape of the rectangular table is compared to the acute angles of and two obtuse angles. The author writes, “If our table is 'really' rectangular, it will look, from almost all points of view, as if it had two acute angles and two obtuse angles. If opposite sides are parallel, they will look as if they converged to a point away from the spectator; if they are of equal length, they will look as if the nearer side were longer.”
The thunder and the sun
The author compares the speed of the sun and thunder using a simile. The author says, “But the sense-datum which we call hearing the thunder does not take place until the disturbance of the air has travelled as far as to where we are. Similarly, it takes about eight minutes for the sun's light to reach us; thus, when we see the sun we are seeing the sun of eight minutes ago.”
The metaphor of knowledge
The author uses the metaphor of knowledge to argue that acquaintance is acquired, not necessarily inborn. The author writes, “Let us consider first the knowledge of universals by acquaintance. It is obvious, to begin with, that we are acquainted with such universals as white, red, black, sweet, sour, loud, hard, etc., i.e. with qualities which are exemplified in sense-data.”
