DevicesFoundational
Personification
Granting human qualities to non-human things.
Principle
Personification only works if the human gesture clarifies the thing.
Takeaways
- It is a form of metaphor specialised to agency.
- Lazy personification reduces the world to mood.
- Used precisely, it gives ideas the ability to act in scene.
Overview
Personification attributes human qualities — intention, mood, will, body — to non-human entities. It overlaps with pathetic fallacy when nature mirrors emotion.
Examples
- The wind argued with the door.
- Hunger taught the dog its better lessons.
- Time forgot the village.