The breaking of the ship's timbers
Under excessive strain, the Ship's timbers break with such force conceivable through the writer's employment of a simile in its description. The imagery is enhanced by comparing how the timbers broke with a report like that of artillery fire. The writer notes: "And when her timbers could no longer stand the strain, they broke with a report like an artillery fire."
The chaotic ice surface
The ice surface's appearance is perceived as rather chaotic and complicated through the narrator's employment of a simile to compare the same to a massive jigsaw puzzle. Therefore, the use of this comparison plays the role of enhancing emphasis while also enhancing the reader's perception of the ice's image.
The narrator notes: "The whole surface of the ice was a chaos of movement. It looked like an enormous jigsaw puzzle, the pieces stretching away to infinity and being shoved and crunched together by some invisible but irresistible force."
The sound of the pack under compression
The sounds made by the pack under compression, particularly their intensity, are enhanced via the narrator's employment of a simile. The narrator notes: "Sometimes there was a sound like a gigantic train with squeaky axles being shunted roughly about with a great deal of bumping and clattering." Therefore, the use of this comparison enhances the perception of the massive sound associated with the pack under compression.
The Ship's fury
The Ship's fury and its unpredictable behavior are made explicit through the use of a simile. In particular, the comparison of the Ship's behavior to that of a giant beast in its death agonies enhances the reader's understanding of its fury while heightening the imagery. The narrator notes: "More than any other single impression in those final hours, all the men were struck, almost to the point of horror, by the way, the ship behaved like a giant beast in its death agonies."
Shackleton's jaw
The imagery of Shackleton's jaw, as well as its strength, is made explicit through the narrator's use of a simile. Comparing Shackleton's jaw to iron enhances the reader's conception of its strength. The narrator notes: "His jaw was like iron."
