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He was numb as a pounded thumb.

We use figures of speech, especially similes like the ones above, in everyday speech. You have to admit that saying someone is "numb as a pounded thumb" (or numb as a post, or numb as a hake) conveys a stronger picture than just saying someone is not too bright.

Poets use figures of speech a great deal. Figures of speech are usually comparisons. They provide us with ways of understanding things that are more suggestive that literal, and which often add visual pictures to an idea.

There are a dozen types of figures of speech, but we're only concerned with three:

the simile: a comparison using the word "like" or "as."

Examples: "My love is like a red, red rose"
"I'm as corny as Kansas in August"

the metaphor: a comparison that doesn't use "like" or "as."

Examples: "My love is a red, red rose"
"I am the walrus."

Note: At first glance, there doesn't seem to be much difference between a simile and a metaphor. But a metaphor is stronger, because it asserts that something is something else. That's a lot more powerful than just saying something is like something else. In everyday language, you can see a difference between "I'm acting like an idiot" and "I am an idiot."

personification: giving an inanimate object human qualities.

Examples: "The moon is looking down at us"
"My car is being stubborn today."
I once heard an appliance repairman say that he knew of a washing machine that didn't like its owner.

As always, once you identify the figures of speech, think about their impact on the overall poem. Why might the poet have used that particular comparison? What does it do for the poem to include a particular figure of speech?