The Iceman Cometh
What metaphors are used in The Iceman Cometh by Eugene O'Neill?
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Larry says of his pipe dreams, "Mine are all dead and buried behind me. What's before me is the comforting fact that death is a long fine sleep, and I'm damned tired, and it can't come too soon for me" (13). To Larry, death is like sleep and he is very, very tired. This is a common metaphor in literature, and death is often referred to as the "eternal sleep" or the "big sleep." It is the ultimate shutting off, the ultimate withdrawal and cessation from the world. Depicting death as sleep also allows one to mitigate its horror by suggesting that it is peaceful and familiar.