A question on comparisons

[Glitch]

I’ve been reading this forum for several months now but this is only my second post.

In observing how people interact in an effort to create realistic dialogue I’ve noticed people and events are often compared to celebrities or movies, for instance there’s a guy where I work who has the nick name Tom because people think he looks like Tom Cruise, and when someone drives fast they get called Stirling Moss.

So I’m wondering if a fantasy story set in modern times should try to make use of the same dialogue to sound realistic, but then I’m also thinking that it’s probably crossing the boundary where the people them selves wouldn’t appreciate their names used in this fashion.

It’s probably already covered by legal framework which prevents us from using real people’s names in fiction, but I’m interested in what other people think about it.

 

[Commonmind]

My opinion is that you develop your own comparative descriptions. Legal ramification's aside, the comparison between an individual and celebrity, especially done consistently through dialogue, would just sound cheap (or like a cop-out, as if the author didn't have enough wit to come up with their own way of describing someone, or some trait of their character).

 

[Talysia]

By comparisons, do you mean literary allusions? As in, by referring every so often to celebrities or events in order to explain better to the reader the setting of the story? Or do you mean constantly comparing characters to celebrities, to tell the reader what sort of character they are?

 

[Glitch]

By comparisons, do you mean literary allusions? As in, by referring every so often to celebrities or events in order to explain better to the reader the setting of the story? Or do you mean constantly comparing characters to celebrities, to tell the reader what sort of character they are?

I'm thinking along the lines of how characters refer to eachother in spoken dialogue, rather than forgoing how I as the author would describe them, If you think of how someone might be called scrooge when they don't want to spend money.

Thinking a bit harder about it, seems more like a stereotyping a character based on their actions.

 

[Duchessprozac]

O would say something like this would be acceptable:

Simon stood in the doorway. People would often say he lookied like Tom Cruise, although he did not think so. His Jaw was too wide and his nose flatter to his face, but really what made people think this was his smile. When he smiled his teeth shined and all his facial flaws seemed to fade away as people gazed at his brilliant white smile.

Just alluding their likeness to well known people would show a lack of of imagination.