The fearful elation
The comparison of Mary’s fearful elation coming back to the narrator like a note, albeit a faint one, brings out the obscurity of the same situation to the narrator. The perception of the same is enhanced in the reader, and that too, “like a faint note of challenge.”
The quickness with which David is lost when released
The quickness with which David is lost when released is brought out by the writer through the use of a simile. In this way, the imagery of the quickness of this loss is comprehended through its link to a fired arrow:
“When you release David‘s hand he is immediately lost like an arrow from the bow.”
Like a sad baby
The imagery of Mary is enhanced through the use of a simile to present the way in which she placed her fingers to her eyes by directly linking the same to a sad baby’s portrayal of the same. Her sadness as well as unhappiness is thus made implicit:
“She put her finger to her eyes, exactly like a sad baby, and so passed from the street.”
Vulnerability
A simile is used in the comparison of Mary’s hopelessness and vulnerability to a homeless leaf blown by passers-by. When the writer compares her to “a homeless leaf blown about” her vulnerability is made explicit. The phrase “windy days” alludes to the difficult times that have reduced the woman such that she has become explicitly susceptible and defenseless:
“In these windy days she is like a homeless leaf blown about by passers‐by.”
Mary’s husband
In his quest for a for “some letter big with the fate of a picture,” Mary’s husband resorts to following the postman around as if he were his guardian angel or perhaps an assassin. In the portrayal of this behavior, the writer uses a simile in which the same is expressed:
“He dogged the postman from door to door like an assassin or a guardian angel.”
