Like Father, Like Son; A Common Phrase Used By Many To Describe How A

Like father, like son; a common phrase used by many to describe how a man's son is just like his father. In E. B. White's Once More To The Lake, the narrator is reminded throughout his trip to the lake, how much his son is just as he was when he was that age. White uses literary techniques such as imagery, metaphor, and tone to illustrate how his son is just as he was when he was that age. Imagery, one of the most powerful techniques a writer can use when expressing his/her thoughts is commonly used in White's essay. In the beginning, the author uses specific words and phrases to describe the setting, a camp at a lake in Maine that E.B. White used to visit when he was a young boy with his father. He reflects on his memories from the past to help the reader to become personally involved with the story. This phrase, this holy spot-the coves and streams, the hills that the sun set behind, the campus and the path behind the camps allows the reader to picture this peaceful place in their minds. When E.B. White grows older and has his own son, he goes to this campsite on the lake, and he describes to the reader how the place looks the same as it did years before. When E.B. White brings his son to go fishing at the lake, he tells how it reminds him of when he and his father would fish at the lake. White then explains how he believes that he has taken the place of his father, and his son has taken the place of himself. Everywhere we went, I had trouble making out which was I, the one walking at my side, the one walking in my pants. This shows the reader that the narrator is reflecting back on his memories from Maine when he was young, and he wants to show his son the same things he experienced when he was there. E.B. White's essay is filled with a description of the lake that takes the reader side by side with him as he is expressing his memories, and it shows an emotional aspect of a man reflecting upon his memories. Continuing on the emotional path, White goes onto express his thoughts through metaphor.