Walter Van Tilburg Clark's short story, “The Portable Phonograph”, portrays the story of four survivors of a devastating nuclear war, and how the disaster has affected them within their mind and bodies. Inevitably there will be metaphors throughout. A metaphor simply plays as,” A figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action which is not literally”(Dictionary.com). Among the various metaphors given, ideas are created through colors and the four survivors emotions. Within the first line of the story it reads, “ The RED SUNSET, with narrow, black cloud strips like the threats across it, lay on the curved horizon of the prairie”( Tillburg Clark, 1). It seems like the metaphor is painting a simple picture in your…show more content… The doctor had walked the other two men out and had said their goodbyes, he then stood at the entrance listening and looking up at the sky,” In the rifts of the clouds the doctor saw four stars flying. It impressed the doctor that one of them had just been obscured by the beginning of a flying cloud at the very moment he heard what he had been listening for, a sound of a suppressed coughing”(Tilburg Clark, 7), the pitch black night are lit up by the four stars symbolizing the four men, the beginning of a flying cloud covering one of the fours stars also the sound of the suppressed coughing is a very big hint that one of the four men will be dying off, being the young sick musician. Dr. Jenkins stood there for a few moments until he saw a moving shadow and nervously stepped back into his home and quietly put his phonograph away, as for his edgy attitude he was to make sure his possessions were safe from any possible thieves. He rearranged his bed to be facing the door, got under his blankets and closed his eyes, “On the inside of the bed, next the wall, he could feel with his hand, the comfortable piece of lead pipe”( Tilburg Clark, 7), in any case a lead pipe is never comfortable, holding a lead pipe next to his bedside along with him and being apprehensively aware of his surroundings, all show signs concluding the lead pipe is his weapon to
