Conversations between two Koreans can become metaphorical, more often than in the West. Some Koreans just enjoy saying things indirectly, to the extent that they tend to speak pretty much like buddhist monks conversing in mystic zen poetry. Unless you listen (and think) very carefully, you may not understand what they are talking about.
Although its title is a simile, the entire latter half of the following song is a good example of Korean style metaphor: 구멍난 가슴에 우리 추억이 흘러넘쳐… (From the hole in my chest, our memories are spilling out…), which implies that memories are blood coming out of the heart broken by the sudden farewell. But there is not one single word of “blood” anywhere in the song. “Memories are blood,” you could say so in English metaphor. But often in Korean, when it’s so obvious, it is not necessary to say it directly in order to qualify as a true metaphor. In fact, saying it out loud would ruin all the fun of delicate, delectable figurative speech, Korean style. Instead, you just keep elaborating on and on till your listeners get it, as in this song:
When newborn Dawn appeared with rosy fingers…
Homer, The Odyssey (c. 8th century BCE)
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