An extended metaphor is a sustained symbolic element that an author develops over the course of many sentences, lines, or chapters in a novel. In a novel, it illuminates a greater human truth (or theme) the writer would like readers to understand. Extended metaphors are more complicated than regular metaphors because extended metaphors more deeply explore the similarities between the original symbol and the theme or idea to which it is compared.
The 6th Borough, the story Oskar’s father told him the night before he died, could be interpreted as an extended metaphor. Today, in an AARDVARK post, you will explore what The 6th Borough could represent. Choose elements of the novel that the story might relate to, and explain how it connects to the larger idea, theme, message, or concept the book explores.
