Like cockroaches getting in through cracks
Fat Charlie talks about how he got his name and how he remained known as Fat Charlie even though he was not fat. According to him, the name was given to him by his father and then the name remained even though time passed and Charlie tried to make himself known by other names. Charlie compares the way the name given by his father infiltrated every aspect of his life with the way cockroaches manage to get inside a person’s house by using the smallest crack. This comparison has the purpose of showing just how Charlie was unable to escape his name.
Like a man waiting to be killed by a guillotine
In the first chapter, Charlie meets with his father once more after years of being apart. Instead of staying at the hospital with his mother and father, Charlie decides to go home. Once at home, he settles in an armchair and waits for his father to come to him. He describes his experience with what a man may feel when he know he is about to be beheaded by a guillotine. This comparison is important because it shows just how much Charlie disliked his father and how much he resented him.
The air thick as soup
When Charlie reached his father’s grave, the first he noticed is how the air was extremely hot and humid. For Charlie it quickly became hard to breath and the author to make the reader understand just how humid the air was compared it to soup. This comparison has the purpose of highlighting the idea that Charlie was feeling uncomfortable.
Metaphor for reconciliation
After finding his father’s grave, Charlie remains alone with one of his old neighbors. He is told to shovel dirt on the casket and while he initially thinks he has to do it only as a symbol, he soon finds that he is expected to shovel the whole pile of dirt on his father. By agreeing to do it, Charlie forgives his father and his willingness to bury him is a metaphor that transmits just that.
Stories as spider webs
In the third chapter, stories are compared to spider webs by the author. The comparison is made to show just how easily a person can become caught in a story and how hard it is to escape from it. The comparison also has the purpose of showing just how powerful stories are and how much they can impact a person’s life.
