Long Way Down Figurative Langauge
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Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
By Liane Hicks
Long Way Down is a highly acclaimed young adult novel that is poignantly written in vivid free verse. It is the powerful tale of a young man named Will Holloman faced with a life altering decision. Engage students with premade Storyboard That activities!
Storyboard Description
Have students identify different examples of figurative language in Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
Storyboard Text
- SIMILE
- PERSONIFICATION
- My mother used to say, I know you're young, gotta get it out, but just remember, when you're walking in the nighttime, make sure the nighttime ain't walking into you.
- SIMILE
- And my mom moaning low…hanging over my brother's body like a dimmed light post.
- Reynolds weaves everyday objects and scenes into the tragic events of Shawn's death. These innocent elements like bubblegum on the sidewalk and children using the caution tape as a plaything lend a sense of the ordinary to the horrific and shocking circumstances of a shooting. The similes suggest that while tragic, shootings are something with which the neighborhood has sadly become all too familiar.
- Shawn was zipped into a bag and rolled away, his blood added to the pavement galaxy of bubblegum stars. The tape framed it like it was art. And the next day, kids would play mummy with it.
- The author uses the nighttime often to describe the ways in which some of the characters turn towards dangerous and destructive behavior. Will's mother warned Shawn about getting caught up in that world. In her quote, the nighttime is used like a person - walking into you.
- Reynolds uses a variety of similes to create visceral imagery of each moment. He describes the shattering grief felt by Will's mother as she holds her oldest son, Shawn, after he has been shot, saying that she was hanging over his body like a dimmed light post.
- LONG WAY DOWNFIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
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