EPIC SIMILES

There are two types of similes:

1. Simple similes
2. Epic – or Homeric similes

Simple Similes use like or as (or so, resembles, than, compares to, etc) to compare two unlike things on ONE LEVEL.
For example:
He is sly as a fox.
She is like a jaguar when she runs.
I am hungry like a wolf.

Epic Similes are…well…epic. They use like or as (or so, resembles, than, compares to, etc) to compare two unlike
things on MORE THAN ONE LEVEL. For example:
He is sly as a fox that got its PhD from Harvard.
She is like a hungry jaguar chasing its prey when she runs.
I am hungry like a wolf that has been chained to a fence for two weeks.
Epic similes can get really epic:
Life is like a box of Godiva chocolates dipped in gold and filled with caramel that oozes down your chin
when you bite into it.

Epic similes can be called HOMERIC similes after Homer – not Simpson – the guy who wrote the epic poem, The
Odyssey.

Your assignment:
1. Try writing epic similes.
Pick 3 of the following subjects, and write an Epic (Homeric) simile them.

School happiness
School lunch Bullies
Love Parents
Fear Friends
…Or pick your own topic.

2. Read a section of The Odyssey and pick out as many epic similes as you can. Start reading from page 989 line 204.