Which idea does the metaphor 'Life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly' express?

Which idea does the metaphor 'Life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly' express?

• A. Hope
• B. Progress
• C. Disappointment
• D. Failure

Answer: (D)

Potential and obstacle sit at the heart of this image: life as a bird that could soar but is held back by a broken wing. The broken wing makes flying impossible, so the idea it conveys is an enduring inability to achieve what life is capable of. That points to failure—the state of not attaining goals or realizing potential, even when the possibility seemed there. It isn’t hopeful, because flight isn’t possible; it isn’t progress, since there’s no forward movement; and it isn’t just disappointment, which is a feeling—this is about a lasting condition of not succeeding.

Potential and obstacle sit at the heart of this image: life as a bird that could soar but is held back by a broken wing. The broken wing makes flying impossible, so the idea it conveys is an enduring inability to achieve what life is capable of. That points to failure—the state of not attaining goals or realizing potential, even when the possibility seemed there. It isn’t hopeful, because flight isn’t possible; it isn’t progress, since there’s no forward movement; and it isn’t just disappointment, which is a feeling—this is about a lasting condition of not succeeding.