How does Cao Xueqin use imagery in The Story of the Stone, or The Dream of the Red Chamber; Volume 1: The Golden Days?

Example of Imagery:

"Now this block of stone, having undergone the melting and moulding of a goddess, possessed magic powers. It could move about at will and could grow or shrink to any size it wanted. Observing that all the other blocks had been used for celestial repairs and that it was the only one to have been rejected as unworthy, it became filled with shame and resentment and passed its days in sorrow and lamentation."