An Image, a Metaphor, a SImile, a Cliche
An image is a group of words that creates a verbal picture of the subject, object or feeling that is being described.
  Consider the following:

	I gazed up at a Grecian azure-blue sky.  
	Gulls wheeled above me, swooping down 
	Like arrows fired by angry gods.
	No-one would harm me here.  
	No-one even knew I was here.  
	I was a cork floating on the edge of the ocean.  

	"Archie?  Archie!  You old scampering pond fly!  
	Fancy meeting you here!"  
	I looked up into a face
	As wrinkled as an old orange - it was Reggie.  

	My troubles had just begun.

The images have been underlined. You will notice that each presents a kind of "painting in words" of whatever it is describing. "I gazed up" would not be considered to be an image since it merely describes factually what was done without trying to describe the action more colourfully. And if the first sentence had read merely: "I gazed up at the sky," there would be no image there, since the sky would just be a factual term, undecorated by "Grecian azure-blue."
Certain types of image have more technical names. A metaphor is an image in which something or someone is described in terms of someone or something else. Confused? Look at this example:

I was a cork floating on the edge of the ocean.

Now, of course, the writer wasn't really a cork. But he calls himself a cork to give us a strong impression of his sense of freedom. One thing has been used to describe something else. But consider this image:

I was like a cork floating on the edge of the ocean.

This is called a simile because it does not say that one thing is another thing (as a metaphor would) but rather it suggests that one thing is like another thing - it gets its name from the Latin "similis" meaning "similar." The words "like" and "as" are often used in similes: "She is as fast as a hare"; "He jumps like a kangaroo."
Images are often found in poetry but they can be found in any kind of literature - and if you do any creative writing yourself you should feel free to use them. But be careful! An image that has become over-used by writers is often called a cliche. Good writing tends to avoid cliches, and strives to find original and effective ways of conveying meaning. The "hare" and "kangaroo" examples would be regarded as cliches because they are over-used. Perhaps you can suggest more interesting alternatives? 


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