The preceding arguments concern three different analytical questions. Investigating the point of resemblance asks whether the qualities are independent or composite. Studying wit and derision asks what the speaker intends by an apparent mismatch. Studying comparison markers asks which word or construction presents the relation.
For example, “this coward is like a lion” contains an explicit formal comparison but may still be strongly ironic when the audience knows the person’s conduct. A visible marker does not cancel irony; irony does not erase the grammar.
A sound analysis therefore examines form, intended meaning and rhetorical purpose as interconnected but distinguishable aspects.