Personification Lesson: Learn Definition, Examples, and How to Use Personification

Lesson Overview

• What Is Personification?
• What Are the Uses of Personification?
• How to Use Personification
• Examples of Personification
• Personification Exercise
• Conclusion

What Is Personification?

Personification is a rhetorical device used primarily in literature and the arts to attribute human characteristics to non-human entities, including animals, objects, and abstract concepts. This literary tool involves the endowment of human qualities such as emotions, desires, and physical attributes to things that are not human. The purpose of personification is not merely decorative but serves as a crucial technique for creating vivid and imaginative descriptions that engage the reader's senses and emotions.The utilization of personification can be observed across various genres and forms of writing, from the classical poetry of Shakespeare to contemporary advertising. It allows the writer to convey complex ideas and emotions more effectively by fostering a deeper connection between the audience and the subject matter. Through personification, inanimate objects and abstract notions acquire agency and relatability, which can dramatically enhance the communicative power of language.

What Are the Uses of Personification?

There are many reasons why personification is so widely used across different literary forms.

Let's learn personification uses and why they are one of the most utilized tools in literature

Enhancing Emotional Connection
Personification plays a vital role in bridging the gap between the reader's experience and the text. By ascribing human traits to non-human elements, writers make these elements feel familiar and relatable. This familiarity evokes empathy from the reader, making the experience of reading more engaging and emotionally rich. Personification in poetry is used for the same reason. For example, describing a stormy sea as "angry" immediately evokes a sense of danger and turmoil, which resonates on a human emotional level.

Aiding in Visualization
One of the most significant contributions of personification is its ability to paint vivid pictures in the mind of the reader. Human characteristics make abstract or mundane elements more concrete and observable. When a poet describes the sun as "smiling down on the earth," it not only personifies the sun but also helps the reader visualize a warm, bright, comforting presence, enhancing the imagery of the text.

Facilitating Deeper Understanding
Personification can also be a powerful tool for illustrating and communicating complex themes and ideas. By assigning human actions and emotions to concepts, writers can unpack dense philosophical ideas or abstract notions in a more digestible and comprehensible form. For example, when death is personified as a character that interacts with others, complex discussions about mortality and fate become more accessible and compelling.

Encouraging Creative Expression
Lastly, personification is instrumental in fostering creativity in writing. It challenges writers to think beyond the literal and explore the potential in every element of their narrative. This exploration encourages a more dynamic and innovative use of language, promoting a creative atmosphere in which literary boundaries can be expanded and redefined.

Take This Quiz

Personification Quiz Questions and Answers

How to Use Personification

Using personification effectively in writing involves a systematic approach. Here are the key steps to learn how to use personification:

• Identify the Purpose
  Determine why you are using personification in your text. The goal could be to evoke emotions, create vivid imagery, simplify complex ideas, or inject humor.

• Select the Appropriate Subject
  Choose non-human objects, animals, or abstract concepts that would benefit from human-like qualities. The selection should align with the purpose identified and contribute to the overall message or theme.

• Choose Human Characteristics Wisely
  Decide which human traits or emotions to attribute to the chosen subject. These should be relevant and effective in highlighting certain features of the subject or enhancing the narrative's emotional depth.

• Integrate Personification Seamlessly
  Incorporate personification naturally into your writing. It should enhance, not distract, and maintainthe flow and coherence of the narrative. Use it at points where it can make the most impact without seeming out of place.

• Maintain Consistency
  Ensure that once an object or concept is personified, it retains those human-like qualities throughout the piece. Consistency in personification helps strengthen the narrative and avoids confusing the reader.

• Evaluate and Revise
  After using personification, revisit and assess its effectiveness in the context of the entire text. Revise to improve clarity and impact, based on feedback from readers or personal reevaluation.

Examples of Personification

To understand personification better, it is important to examine its application in everyday language, and classic literature, providing specific examples for each category

Personification in Everyday Language

Everyday expressions often include personification to bring abstract concepts or natural phenomena closer to human understanding and experience.

Examples include

• "The wind whispered secrets through the trees."

This suggests the wind is capable of human-like communication, enhancing the mysterious or soothing nature of its sound.

• "Opportunity knocked on his door."

 Here, opportunity is conceptualized as a visitor, creating an image of an arriving chance or possibility.

• "The sun smiled down on the picnic." 

This expression gives the sun a friendly, human characteristic, implying a warm, pleasant day.

Classic Examples in Literature

Literature provides a fertile ground for exploring personification, with numerous instances where non-human elements are endowed with human qualities.

Notable examples include:

• William Shakespeare, "As You Like It"
  "When daisies pied and violets blue / And lady-smocks all silver-white / And cuckoo-buds of yellow hue / Do paint the meadows with delight..."

In this excerpt from a song within the play, Shakespeare personifies the flowers and plants as artists who actively paint the meadows with delight, suggesting a joyful and lively scene created by nature itself.

• Emily Dickinson, "The Train"
  "I like to see it lap the Miles - And lick the Valleys up / And stop to feed itself at Tanks..."
  
  Here, Dickinson personifies the train as an animal-like creature that laps miles and licks up valleys, vividly illustrating the train's speed and power as it moves through the landscape.

• Percy Bysshe Shelley, "Ode to the West Wind"
  "Thou who didst waken from his summer dreams, / The blue Mediterranean, where he lay, / Lull'd by the coil of his crystalline streams..."

In this passage, Shelley personifies the West Wind as a powerful being that awakens the Mediterranean Sea from its slumber, invoking the idea of the sea as a person being gently stirred awake.

Personification Exercise

Read the sentences below and identify the personification used in each. 

• The angry clouds marched across the sky.

The clouds are described as "angry" and "marched", attributes typically associated with humans.

• Opportunity knocked on his door just when he needed it.

Opportunity is personified as someone knocking on a door.

• The sun smiled down on us during the picnic.

The sun is personified as "smiling", a human action.

• The car complained as the key turned in its old ignition.

The car is personified as "complaining", a human behavior.

• Time crept slowly until the end of the school day.

Time is personified as "crept", implying it moves stealthily like a person.

• The wind whispered secrets to the trees.

The wind is personified as "whispering", a human action.

• The flowers danced in the breeze.

The flowers are personified as "dancing", a human activity.

• The fire swallowed the entire forest.

The fire is personified as "swallowed", a human action associated with eating.

• The old gate groaned as it opened.

The gate is personified as "groaned", a sound typically made by humans.

• The mountains stood proudly above the landscape.

The mountains are personified as "stood proudly", human characteristics of posture and emotion.

Take This Quiz

Simile, Metaphor and Personification Test

Conclusion

As we draw the curtains on the lesson about personification, it's clear that the skills honed offer substantial benefits. Understanding the uses of personification enriches the linguistic toolbox, deepening engagement with literary texts. Learning the definition and how to use personification, especially in poetry, equips learners with critical skills that enhance both creativity and interpretive abilities. 

This lesson prepares one to thoughtfully deploy personification, enabling the vivid conveyance of complex emotions and ideas. Ultimately, these skills are invaluable as they elevate writing and reading experiences, nurturing a profound appreciation for the art of language.