The essay relies on the central extended metaphor of Borges being split into two beings. Borges uses this metaphor, maintaining two separate characters in the story to illustrate the duality of his identity. “Borges” represents his public, external persona, while “I” embodies his private, internal self. This framework allows him to examine the tension and separation between these two aspects of his identity, demonstrating the complex interplay between an author’s public image and their personal self. The metaphor also represents self-reflection, as one Borges—“I”—dissects the nature of the other contemplating his existence, the consequences of literary fame, and the ever-present duality of his identity.

Borges uses thought-provoking and poetic imagery to build this essay, enhancing the reader’s understanding of the duality of identity. For instance, he portrays his external persona, “Borges,” as a name written on mail, a list of professors, or in books, creating images that emphasize this literary identity as something that only exists on the page. Likewise, Borges describes his true self as “the laborious strumming of a guitar” (Paragraph 2), creating an auditory image that is more tactile than the text described previously.