Description of Mrs. Barbour (Simile)
According to Theo, Mrs. Barbour is "like a fashion drawing come to life, she turned heads wherever she went, gliding along obliviously without appearing to notice the turbulence she created in her wake; her eyes were spaced far apart, her ears were small, high-set, and very close to her head, and her body was long-waisted and thin, like an elegant weasel’s" (96). This simile underscores Mrs. Barbour's unsettling composure: she is both a fashion drawing and an elegant weasel, she is a beauty ideal and a comical caricature. This simile shows that even though Mrs. Barbour attracts significant attention and desire, she is largely confined by the perceptions of others, and even though she seems like an elegant animal, a cunning and poised creature, she is more complex than she appears to be.
Middle Zone (Metaphor)
Theo believes that there is a "middle zone" between reality and the interpretation of reality, and describes it as "a rainbow edge where beauty comes into being” (961). This metaphor describes the meeting point between life and reality and the power of perception, and how perception creates art and beauty from the harsh and often painful realities of life. The middle zone between pure imagination and reality is a rainbow edge, a complex assortment of colors, emotions, and possibilities at the meeting point between reality and interpretation.
Dream (Simile)
After Boris visits Theo, Theo has several strange dreams that he fears are prophetic. These dreams "refused to dissipate and hung like a poisonous vapor" (749). By comparing the dreams to a hanging poisonous vapour, Tartt conveys how difficult the dreams are to forget or reckon with. Theo isn't completely certain what these dreams mean, but they haunt him and he cannot escape them.
The Night (Metaphor)
After Theo learns of Andy's death, he claims the night is "a dreamlike mangle of past and present" (582). This metaphor compares the night, a symbol of internal uncertainty and sadness, to a mix of past and present experiences that resemble a dream, suggesting that the result of past and present experiences are not especially positive. Because dreams cannot be controlled or anticipated, the dreamlike quality of this "mangle" is disempowering and surreal.
The Moon (Simile)
While wandering through the unfamiliar streets of Amsterdam, Theo compares the moon to "a party trick that might pop out at a conjurer’s wink or else float away into the darkness and out of sight” (826). This simile emphasizes how foreign and lost Theo feels in Amsterdam, as even the moon seems inconstant and strange, like a party trick, and transient enough to pop out of the sky or float away—an animation rather than reality.
