Ruined ceiling (simile)
While introducing the reader to his home at the start of the book, Ono notes that the dust is visible in the sunshine, "as though the ceiling had only that moment crashed down" (p 12). This image, of a home destroyed by war, contrasts jarringly with the description of a tranquil, well-designed home. It is typical of Ishiguro's understated style that the horrors of war are alluded to with such brevity and matter-of-factness, and it is also typical that this early figurative language remains very much in the realm of the real. Ono draws from his own experiences when he chooses metaphors, and in fact, his choice of metaphor is often a good way to tell what he's thinking about. Since Ono is hesitant to admit that he is still traumatized by the physical dangers of war, we can instead gather, thanks to this metaphor, that he thinks about the war often and that it does not feel very far in his past.
Boisterous banners (metaphor)
In an early description of his beloved pleasure district, Ono describes the "numerous cloth banners pressing at you from all sides, leaning out at you from their shop fronts, each declaring the attractions of their establishment in boisterous lettering" (p 23). This is a particular type of metaphorical language called personification, in which objects are given human attributes. The personification is subtle and understated, but since Ishiguro doesn't use much figurative language at all, the passage stands out. The use of personification makes the scene appear infused with life, in contrast to its current state, which Ono's friend Mrs. Kawakami compares to a graveyard (p 28). This language not only makes us understand that the district used to be livelier; it also makes us understand that Ono is lively when he thinks and talks about it, and that this district was once and still is deeply important to him.
Tortoise (metaphor)
The "Tortoise" starts off as a nickname for one particular character in An Artist of the Floating World, but after learning from his son-in-law Taro that many workplaces and schools have slow, dedicated workers with the same nickname, Ono begins to apply the metaphor more broadly. In this way the metaphor is somewhat complex. The animals, tortoises, known for their diligent competence, are applied as a metaphor to Ono's colleague, who is nicknamed the Tortoise because he also bears those characteristics. Once the colleague has that nickname, though, Ono begins to use the man himself as a metaphor for a certain kind of person— a person who works hard, avoids risk, and is more earnest than talented. Therefore, both the animal tortoise and the person known as "The Tortoise" are metaphors. This distinction might seem impossibly fine and unimportant, and in fact it is often difficult to spot. However, once Ono begins to use a person as a metaphor, it becomes clear that he isn't seeing things clearly. By taking a complicated person with his own desires and reducing him to a metaphorical category (a metaphorical category, in fact, to describe a kind of person Ono feels scorn and contempt for) we know that ability to see other people in all of their complexity has been compromised.
Kindling (metaphor)
Fire is often used as a symbol in this book. However, one aspect of fire is used in a particularly memorable bit of figurative language as well. While his father burns his beloved paintings, Ono tells his mother that this won't destroy his love of art. In fact, he says, "The only thing that father's succeeded in kindling is my ambition" (p 47). The language and use of wordplay are much more dramatic, even melodramatic, than the kinds of statements Ono makes later in life. In this case, though, the metaphor is deeply satisfying. Ono turns the destructive fire that ruins his paintings into a fuel that prompts him to create more. Furthermore, his ability to use language cleverly and creatively shows us that he remains as much an artist as ever. While his father has the material power to create a literal fire, the young Matsuji has the creative power to metaphorically turn the fire into a force for good.
Floating World (metaphor)
For a long time, Ono does not explain to his readers what the "floating world" of the title refers to. In fact, we learn only about three-fourths of the way through this book that it is a nickname for the "nighttime world of pleasure, entertainment, and drink" that Ono inhabited while working under Moriyama. The floating is, of course, metaphorical: this subculture does not literally float. The metaphor evokes a sense of fluidity, temporariness, and surreality. Like an object floating in water, this lost world is elusive and difficult to locate with any definitiveness, both because it is so far in the past by the time Ono narrates this book, and because it belonged to a small group of people separate from mainstream society. This world, Ono explains, seemed to spring into being and then disappear during mundane daylight hours, making the floating metaphor apt. Finally, the phrase "floating" works as a visual metaphor too. This world, and Moriyama's paintings of it, are characterized by soft lantern-light. The image of water works well to evoke fluid, lively lamplight. The metaphor does double-duty, telling us how this world functioned as well as how it looked.
Grotesque miniature cemetery (simile)
While Ono hides out one night in a storeroom at Moriyama's village, he notices that the lamplight in the room has cast shadows on the various objects within, making it look like a "grotesque miniature cemetery" (p 146). Without even looking at the simile's specific content, we can see that it's some of the more colorful, fanciful language in the book. As a whole, Ono reserves his most imaginative phrasing and powerful imagery for discussions of places and times that ignited his artistic and political imagination—that is to say, his time at Moriyama's villa and in the floating world, and, later, his political awakening with Matsuda. This is a particularly good instance of this tendency. However, the actual comparison being made foreshadows Ono's upcoming departure from the villa and his schism with Moriyama. He uses a disturbing simile, which implies that his associations with Moriyama's villa and his artistic techniques are not entirely positive at this point. The image of a graveyard, meanwhile, is a fairly explicit nod towards death—not only the eventual deaths of Kenji and Michiko, but the figurative death of Moriyama and Ono's partnership.
