In the hard light of the city , they start to look like abandoned barges.
It shows how they still are going to have hope and faith in what’s going to happen. They know that just because of where they live, [a shelter] doesn’t change who they are.
Similes compare two things. Because clowns are considered by most to be very funny, the object would also have to be something funny.
Therefore you could say...
A clown is as funny as a medieval joker.
A clown is as funny as a cat barking like a dog.
A clown is as funny as a comedy movie.
Based on the details in the the purpose is to inform
