"Paul Bunyan"
The author engages simile as a means of delineating character towards the end of the poem “Paul Bunyan.” His description of the sound made as the mammoth Mr. Bunyan succeeds in delivering that last final slash with the axe is made palpable through metaphorical language:
”But the next time you hear a "Timber!" yell
That sounds like it's cornin' from the pits of hell.
Then a weird and devilish ghostly wail
Like somebody choppin' on the devil's tail,
Then a shout, a call, a crash, a fall —
That ain't no mortal man at all . . . that's Paul!”
Appropriate Punishment
The poem “With His Mouth Full of Food” is all about Milford Dupree’s one singular character flaw: he talks while eating. This habit is directly attacked as being rude and crude. More obliquely, the depth of how much this habit disgusts his parents is portrayed through imagery which suggests he could easily be sued were it a crime. Then the author uses a metaphorical comparison to suggest even though Milford is human, this flaw is bad enough that it warrants his placement alongside caged animals:
“Why, just like an animal you should be zoo'd”
“Straight up in the air LIKE A HELICOPTER.”
The central event in the poem “The Long-Haired Boy” is when the titular character’s defining physical characteristic starts uncontrollably flapping until the forces of physics take over and send him flying through the air. To convey the way in this remarkable and fantastic turn of events takes place, the author turns to a simile easily digested and understood by most readers.
"No Difference"
This particular poem is constructed entirely upon the use of simile. The moral lesson (one of the few poems in the collection with an instantly recognizable moral) is summed up in the fine stanza:
“So maybe the way
To make everything right
Is for God to just reach out
And turn off the light!”
Before learning that moral, however, the poet uses the power of simile to prove his point that equality comes at night:
“Small as a peanut.
Big as a giant,
We're all the same size
When we turn off the light.
Rich as a sultan.
Poor as a mite,
We're all worth the same
When we turn off the light.”
The Liar, That’s Who
The poem titled simply “Who” is a monologue by an imaginative person who claims to be able to kick a ball all the way to Afghanistan and was brave enough to fight a tiger terrorizing the town when the police and ran and hid. Before admitting he’s prone to lying, he also uses a simile to describe a certain future for himself:
“Who will fly and have X-ray eyes —
And be known as the man no bullet can kill?”
