Ever heard a tree whisper secrets or the wind howl with laughter? That’s personification.
It’s not about giving your houseplants names (though we all do that, right?). It’s a literary device that adds a splash of life to inanimate objects and abstract ideas. In this guide, you’ll learn everything you need to know.
What Exactly Is Personification?
Personification is a figure of speech where you give human qualities to non-human things.
We’re talking emotions, actions, and characteristics. Think of it as a costume party for nouns, where everyday objects dress up as people. It’s a powerful tool that writers use to create vivid imagery, evoke emotions, and make their writing more engaging.
This literary technique breathes life into the mundane, making the world a bit more magical (or sometimes, a bit more menacing).
It helps us connect with the non-human world on a more personal level.
It allows us to relate to concepts and objects in a way that resonates with our human experience.
This can be used to create empathy, humor, or even fear.
Types of Personification
While the core concept remains the same, personification can manifest in a few different ways:
Simple Personification
This is your basic, everyday personification. A simple attribution of human qualities.
For example, “The sun smiled down on us.” The sun doesn’t actually smile (unless it’s got a secret we don’t know about), but this phrase gives it a warm, welcoming feeling.
It is used here to create a sense of warmth.
Other examples include: “The rain cried down from the sky,” or “The clock ticked impatiently.” These simple examples make use of human actions or emotions to describe inanimate objects.
Pathetic Fallacy
This is where things get a little more dramatic. And it sounds like an insult, but I promise you it’s not.
Pathetic fallacy goes beyond simple humanization by reflecting human emotions in nature. For instance, “The angry storm raged outside.”
The storm isn’t literally angry, but this reflects the emotional turmoil of a character or the overall mood of a scene.
It’s often used to mirror the inner state of a character or to set a specific tone for a scene. For example, a character experiencing grief might be described alongside a “weeping willow” or “mournful rain.”
Key Elements of Personification
What makes personification tick? Here are the essential ingredients:
- Human Actions: Giving inanimate objects human actions, like walking, talking, or thinking. Examples include: “The car coughed and sputtered,” or “The computer thought for a moment.”
- Human Emotions: Attributing human feelings to non-human entities, such as joy, sadness, or fear. Examples include: “The lonely house stood on the hill,” or “The jealous wind howled through the trees.”
- Human Characteristics: Describing objects with human traits, like personality, intelligence, or physical appearance. Personification often relies on these characteristics. Examples include: “The wise old oak tree,” or “The playful breeze danced through the meadow.”
Personification Examples
Let’s look at some more examples in action, expanding on the previous ones:
- “The alarm clock screamed at me to wake up.” (Alarm clocks are notoriously rude.) This paints a vivid picture of the jarring sound of an alarm.
- “Opportunity knocked at the door.” (Hopefully, you answered!) This is a common idiom that uses personification to represent the arrival of a chance.
- “The wind whispered through the trees.” (Nature’s way of gossiping.) This creates a gentle and peaceful image.
- “The car grumbled as it struggled up the hill.” (Sounds like my morning routine.) This gives the car a relatable human characteristic of exertion.
- “The city never sleeps.” (It just takes short naps.) This is a common way to describe a bustling metropolis.
- “Death laid his icy hand on the king.” (A classic example of personification). Imbuing human traits is used here for dramatic effect. This creates a chilling image of death’s inevitable arrival.
- “The shadows danced in the moonlight.” This gives the shadows a sense of movement and playfulness.
- “The river snaked its way through the valley.” This gives the river a winding, sinuous quality.
- “Fear gripped his heart.” This gives fear a physical presence and power.
- “The words jumped off the page.” This describes how engaging and captivating the text is.
Dos and Don’ts of Using Personification
Like any literary device, personification has its rules:
Do: Use It Sparingly
Overdoing it can make your writing sound cheesy or forced. Personification is best used in moderation. It’s more effective when used strategically to highlight key moments or create specific effects.
Not every carrot needs an emotion.
Don’t: Mix Metaphors
Avoid creating confusing or contradictory images.
For example, “The angry sun whispered secrets.” Angry and whispering don’t quite mesh. The technique can be ruined by mixed metaphors.
Ensure that the human qualities you assign to an object or concept remain consistent.
Do: Use It to Enhance Your Writing.
Personification should add depth and meaning to your work, not just be there for the sake of it.
Give it a clear purpose. It should contribute to the overall message or theme of your writing. Settle for nothing less.
Don’t: Be Cliché
Try to avoid overused examples like “Time flies.” Groan. Get creative. Personification is more effective when it’s original.
Think outside the box and come up with fresh and imaginative ways to use this device.
Advanced Tips for Personification Pros (Level Up)
Ready to take your literary game to the next level?
- Use it to create a specific mood or atmosphere. For example, using dark and ominous personification can create a sense of suspense or fear.
- Combine it with other literary devices for even greater impact. For instance, combining personification with metaphors or similes can create richer and more complex imagery.
- Consider the context and audience. The effectiveness of personification can depend on the context and who you are writing for.
- Use it to create a unique voice for your writing. Personification can add personality to your writing and make it more distinctive.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Here are some common personification pitfalls:
- Overuse: As mentioned before, too much can be a bad thing. It can dilute its impact and make your writing feel contrived.
- Inconsistency: Make sure the technique makes sense within the context of your writing. Don’t assign conflicting human qualities to the same object or concept.
- Forced Personification: Don’t force it where it doesn’t belong. It should feel natural and flow seamlessly with the rest of your writing.
The Power of Personification in Different Contexts
Personification isn’t just for creative writing. It can be found in various forms of communication:
- Poetry: Poets frequently use the technique to evoke emotions and create vivid imagery.
- Prose: Novelists and short story writers use it to bring their stories to life.
- Advertising: Advertisers use it to make their products more relatable and appealing.
- Music: Songwriters use it to create powerful and emotional lyrics.
- Everyday Speech: We often use it in our everyday conversations without even realizing it.
The Psychological Impact of Personification
Personification can have a significant psychological impact on readers and listeners.
By giving human qualities to non-human things, we can:
- Increase engagement: You can make writing more interesting and engaging by creating relatable characters and situations.
- Evoke emotions: You can evoke a wide range of emotions, from joy and sadness to fear and anger.
- Enhance understanding: You can help others understand complex concepts by making them more concrete and relatable.
- Promote empathy: You can foster empathy towards non-human entities by making them seem more human-like.
Personification Throughout Literature
Personification has been used by writers for centuries.
Here are some notable examples from classic literature:
- “Because I could not stop for Death – / He kindly stopped for me –” – Emily Dickinson. Here, death is described as a polite gentleman.
- “The wind howled in the trees.” – This common phrase is used in countless works of literature to create a sense of atmosphere.
- “The fog comes / on little cat feet.” – Carl Sandburg. This creates a gentle and stealthy image of the fog.
Watch this helpful video to learn more about personification:
Personification vs. Other Literary Techniques
Personification often gets mixed up with other literary devices. Let’s clear up the confusion:
Anthropomorphism
These two are closely related, but there’s a key difference.
Giving human qualities to inanimate objects or abstract ideas creates a specific effect within a sentence or passage.
Anthropomorphism, on the other hand, makes non-human entities behave like actual humans, often throughout an entire story or work.
- Giving human traits: “The wind whispered secrets through the trees.” (The wind is given the human action of whispering.)
- Anthropomorphism: Talking animals in a children’s book, like Mickey Mouse or the characters in “Animal Farm,” are examples of anthropomorphism. They walk, talk, wear clothes, and have complex social interactions like humans.
Essentially, anthropomorphism is a more extensive and sustained form of attributing human qualities.
This technique is a quick, momentary attribution of human qualities; anthropomorphism is a full-blown transformation.
Hyperbole
Giving human qualities to non-human things. Hyperbole uses extreme exaggeration for emphasis or humor.
While they can sometimes overlap, they serve different purposes.
- Attributing human characteristics: “The angry storm raged outside.” (The storm is given the human emotion of anger.)
- Hyperbole: “I’m so hungry I could eat a horse.” (This is an obvious exaggeration to express extreme hunger.)
A phrase can use both: “The mountain groaned under the weight of the snow.”
Here, “groaned” is giving the mountain a human sound, and it also exaggerates the impact of the snow, leaning towards hyperbole.
The key is that hyperbole is about exaggeration, while the other is about giving human traits.
Embodiment
Giving human qualities to non-human things.
Embodiment (sometimes called reification or hypostatization) turns an abstract concept into a concrete, often physical, entity.
- Applying human qualities: “Justice is blind.” (Justice is given the human quality of being blind.)
- Embodiment: The Grim Reaper is an embodiment of Death. He’s not just given qualities of death; he is death in a tangible form.
Embodiment often involves giving human characteristics, but it goes a step further by creating a distinct, almost independent being representing the abstract idea.
Embodiment makes the abstract concrete, often in a physical form, while the other technique simply applies human characteristics.
Metaphor
A metaphor is a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things without using “like” or “as.”
Giving human traits to something non-human is a type of metaphor where one of those things is a non-human entity given human qualities.
- Metaphor: “He is a lion in battle.” (Compares his bravery to a lion’s.)
- Imbuing with human action: “The fire danced in the hearth.” (Gives the fire the human action of dancing.)
All instances of giving human traits are metaphors, but not all metaphors are this technique.
A metaphor can compare two human things, two inanimate objects, or a human and an object. This technique specifically focuses on giving human traits to non-human entities.
Final Thoughts
Personification is a powerful tool that can add depth, emotion, and vibrancy to your writing.
It can be a fun way to express yourself, but it’s important to use it wisely. I mean, don’t give your toaster an attitude :).
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