Question

Which literary device is used in this sentence from James Joyce’s “Araby”?

But my body was like a harp and her words and gestures were like fingers running upon the wires.
a) motif
b) metaphor
c) personification
d) simile

Answer 1

A simile is the literary device used in the sentence. It is used twice in "body like a harp" and "words and gestures were like fingers running upon the wires"

Answer 2

simile

A simile is a comparison between two unlike things using like or as. There are actually two similes in this line. The first is the comparison of the speaker's body to a harp. The second comparison is the woman's words to a harpist's fingers.

A metaphor is a comparison between two unlike things without using like or as. Personification is giving a non-human thing human-like traits. A motif is a dominant idea in a work of literature.