Extended metaphor

An extended metaphor, also called a conceit, is a metaphor that continues into the sentences that follow. It is often developed at great length, occurring frequently in schools coursework or throughout a work, and are especially effective in poems and fiction.

Examples

Symbolism is often a great tool to use in extended metaphors. This is often seen in William Shakespeare's work.^{[citation needed]}

• If one starts with the metaphor of "The seeds have already been sown", an extension could be "It remains to be seen whether weeds or flowers will spring forth."
• Also, many fables and fairy tales are often extended metaphors.

  Such as short stories like "Where Have You Gone, Charming Billy" by Tim O'Brien and "Tandem" by Dan Libman, which uses the metaphor of a tandem bike ride to illustrate a difficult marriage.

Extended metaphor poems are categorized into three groups: "of metaphors", "is metaphors", and "adjacent noun metaphors". An "of metaphor" is a metaphor consisting of the pattern "She is the love of my life". An "is metaphor" is more profound version of "of metaphors". These shorten the previous example to "She is love." An adjacent noun poem is a less common category. It uses three unrelated nouns to create a vivid image. Adjacent noun poems are usually lighthearted and entertaining. Extended metaphors are also often used in poetry, such as Robert Frost's The Road Not Taken.

Extended metaphors appear also in symbolic constitutions and many Native American literature pieces.

See also

• Literary technique
• Stylistic device
• Metaphor