PERSONIFICATION

Welcome to this lecture headed “PERSONIFICATION”. We will be discussing all about personification. Enjoy your lecture.

Personification is a figure of speech in which a thing, an idea or an animal is given human characteristics.

The non-human objects are depicted in such a way that we feel they possess the capability to act like human beings.

For instance, when we say, “The sky weeps” we are giving the sky the ability to cry, which is a human quality.

Therefore, we can say that the sky has been personified in that particular sentence.

Personification can as well be defined as a person who has a lot of a particular quality and who is the perfect example of someone who has that quality an imaginary person that represents a thing or idea the practice of representing a thing or idea as a person in art, literature, etc.

A personification is a figure of speech that compares two unlike things, for example, “her cheeks are like roses” or “his heart is hard as stone”.

A personification is a figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another of a different kind, as an illustration or an ornament e.g. brave as a lion.

Personification is commonly confused with anthropomorphism, where human abilities and characteristics are given to animals (like in allegory, where animals talk and behave as humans do) but the term “personification” ought not to be applied to human-like behavior in animals. 

1. Justice is blind and, at times, deaf.

2. Money is the only friend that I can count on.

3. The cactus saluted any visitor brave enough to travel the scorched land.

In the first example we have a metaphor (because life is being directly compared to a journey.

The second and third examples are personifications and this is illustrated by the fact that in animate things are given human attributes.

Frequently used Examples of Personification

Look at my car. She is a beauty, isn’t it so?

The wind whispered through dry grass.

The flowers danced in the gentle breeze.

Time and tide waits for none.

The fire swallowed the entire forest.

Further instances of Personification

Fear knocked on the door. Faith answered. There was no one there. – Proverb

And like the flowers beside them chill and shiver, Will like the flowers beside them soon be gone – Robert Frost

Earth felt the wound; and Nature from her seat, Sighing, through all her works, gave signs of woe by John Milton

Snow speaks to the people, its falling above in the glooming sunlight. Its white sparkling voice echoes as it falls through the air – Jake

Velvet remembers how it wrapped around me. Keeping me warm on a snowy day. Velvet remembers how it laid softly on my bed. Velvet tells me not to forget it. By Rachael

The operation is over. On the table, the knife lies spent, on its side, the bloody meal smear-dried upon its flanks. The knife rests by Richard Selzer, “The Knife”

Only the champion daisy trees were serene. After all, they were part of a rain forest already two thousand years old and scheduled for eternity, so they ignored the men and continued to rock the diamondbacks that slept in their arms.

It took the river to persuade them that indeed the world was altered. – Toni Morrison, “Tar Baby”

The road isn’t built that can make it breathe hard! – slogan for Chevrolet automobiles

Oreo: Milk’s favorite cookie. – slogan for Oreo cookies

The only monster here is the gambling monster that has enslaved your mother! I call him Gamblor, and it’s time to snatch your mother from his neon claws! – by Homer Simpson, “The Simpsons”

Stars bring me up with you, bring me to the place you sleep. How do you do it? Bring me to your home. Bring your thoughts to me. Share them with me. – by Alex

Hey Diddle, Diddle, the cat and the fiddle. The cow jumped over the moon; the little dog laughed to see such sport. And the dish ran away with the spoon. – Mother Goose

My computer hates me.

The camera loves me.

Art is a jealous mistress.

Wind yells while blowing.

Opportunity knocked on the door.

The sun greeted me this morning.

Snow had wrapped a white blanket over the city.

Time never waits for anyone.

Trees were dancing with the wind.

The radio stopped singing and continued to stare at me.

The picture in that magazine shouted for attention.

Plants were suffering from the intense heat.

The flowers were crying for my attention.

Sun was playing hide and seek, amidst the clouds.

The car winked at me.

The lightning lashed out with anger.

The moon seemed to smile at me from the sky.

The sky was full of dancing stars.

The flowers begged for water.

The wind screamed as it raced around the house.

The house was lazy and unkempt.

The bit chewed into the horse’s mouth.

Lightning danced across the sky.

Trees bowed to the ground.

The carved pumpkin smiled at me.

The trees wove their fingers together to form a braid.

The wind whispered softly in the night.

The sun played hide and seek with the clouds.

The stars winked at me.

The radio sprang to life at the touch of a button.

The bed groaned.

The headlights winked.

Justice is blind and, at times, deaf.

Money is the only friend that I can count on.

He sang a lonely song to the moonlight.

The candle flame danced in the dark.

Thunder grumbled and raindrops reported for duty.

The moon turned over to face the day.

The brown grass was begging for water.

As fall turned to winter, the trees found themselves wearing white.

The sunflowers nodded in the wind.

The angry storm pounded the tin shelter.

The silence crept into the classroom.

This city never sleeps.

The sun stretched its golden arms across the plains.

Any trust I had her him walked right out the door.

Kiss your integrity goodbye.

He had little to live for now that his dreams were dead.

Still waters shivered in the wind.

December light is brief and uncharitable.

The party died as soon as she left.

Light had conquered darkness.

The cigarettes stole his health and spent it on phlegm.

And with those four words her happiness died.

My heart has been skipping around in my chest since I saw her.

The wind whistled throughout the day.

The road twisted and turned continuously for 100 miles.

Her jewelry clearly spoke about her wealth.

One look at the garden and you could tell that the plants were begging for water.

Anyone who has seen his photographs will know that the camera loves him.

The waves ran towards the shore with furious pace.

The leaves danced their way through the lawn.

Every morning, the Sun glanced at them with love.

A gentle wind caressed her cheeks as she lay on the soft grass.

Quite a few dew drops decorated the otherwise plain window.

Poverty stared at them from every corner of the shattered town.

The jacket hugged him so tight, he couldn’t breathe.

Her tummy was punishing me for not eating on time.

It’s the cigarette’s job to tempt and lure.

The sun kissed the flowers.

Opportunity began to knock on my door.

We can observe from the above examples of personification that this literary device assists us to relay actions of inanimate objects to our own emotions.

Uses of Personification

Personification is not just a decorative device but it serves the purpose of offering deeper meanings to literary texts.

It adds brilliance to expressions as we constantly look at the world from a human perspective.

Writers and poets depend on personification to bring inanimate things to life, in a way that their nature and actions are understood in a better way due to the fact that it is much simpler for us to connect to something that is human or that attributes of humans.

The use of personification thus assists us and persuades us to build up a viewpoint that is fresh in addition to being creative.

Thanks for reaching to this point marking the end of this lecture.

Your Lecture Master:

Mst. Ugonwanne Joshua