Hissing (A Metaphor)
Miss Swamp’s voice is compared to hissing. When the kids learn that Miss Nelson is not in the school, they are delighted. They make plans to act up and be terrible. In the course of their acting up, Miss Swamp hisses at them. The hissing underscores her unpleasant voice. Normally, it is animals such as snakes and opossums that hiss. Likening Miss Swamp’s voice to hissing demonstrates that, unlike Miss Nelson, she is not going to allow the kids to misbehave or be terrible. Additionally, her hissing confirms that she is unfriendly.
Witch (A Metaphor)
Miss Swamp is compared to a real witch because she is unpleasant and strict. Miss Nelson’s kids conclude “that Miss Swamp was a real witch.” They make this conclusion after she barks orders at them to open their arithmetic books. She does not care to explain to the kids where Miss Nelson is. Secondly, her appearance gives the impression of being a witch: she is dressed in an “ugly black dress.” The impression of a witch makes the learners to comply with her instructions because it terrifies them.
Load (A Metaphor)
The many homework assignments that Miss Swamp assigns to Miss Nelson’s kids are likened to a load. The metaphorical load confirms that the kids do not have time to fool around like they did when Miss Nelson was their teacher. Miss Swamp has no time for activities like the story hour. All she wants is the kids to participate in real learning activities. The loads of homework make the kids to miss and appreciate Miss Nelson’s pleasantness.
