Today, I’d like to challenge you to write a poem that contains at least one of a different kind of simile – an epic simile. Also known as Homeric similes, these are basically extended similes that develop over multiple lines. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they have mainly been used in epic poems, typically as decorative elements that emphasize the dramatic nature of the subject (see, by way of illustration, this example from Milton’s Paradise Lost). But you could write a complete poem that is just one lengthy, epic simile, relying on the surprising comparison of unlike things to carry the poem across. And if you’re feeling especially cheeky, you could even write a poem in which the epic simile spends lines heroically and dramatically describing something that turns out to be quite prosaic. Whatever you decide to compare, I hope you have fun extending your simile(s) to epic lengths.

An Epic Simile: Love- a choice?

Like a gentle breeze that tiptoes the meadows

and sways the crimson yellow marigold

over the canvas of hues

that spreads like the boundless ocean

whose waves surge and rescind

rhythmically with the kiss of the

gentle breeze that tiptoes the meadows

like a drizzle that impishly teases the marigold

and caresses its tender petals

as it pours its affection

and sways the crimson yellow marigold

–

That’s how your love has permeated my soul,

That’s how your love has become ‘Me’

Love is not a choice; not anymore.

–

©Vandana Bhasin

26.04.2022