Personification In Literature: Definition & Examples - SuperSummary

How to Use Personification

Personification is most effective when used with purpose. Writers must first consider what image or feeling they’re trying to create, then craft a sentence accordingly.

Imagine this scene: It’s a pleasant day, and Jack can’t wait to get outside and enjoy it. That description is functional, but it’s not vibrant. Personification can paint a more compelling picture that shows exactly why Jack is so enticed to head outside:

Jack spilled out the front door and onto the lawn. It was warmer and brighter under the smiling sun, where the light breeze ran soft fingers through his hair, than in the stifling house. The birds congregated on the power line conversed among themselves, while the neighbor’s excitable terrier barked a greeting through the fence, his wagging tail begging for attention.

This paragraph paints a lively picture, depicting natural elements as affectionate friends, making it easy to see why Jack’s so eager to be outside. It also implies that Jack feels a certain kinship with the outdoors; the reader can sense how he appreciates the natural life around him.

Common Examples of Personification

Below are some common examples of personification you may have encountered before.

• Stars winked in the midnight sky.
• Wind rattled the windows as the storm raged
• The engine gave one final protest before the car shuddered to a stop.
• Sunbeams peaked through cracks in the clouds.
• Time marches
• The ocean was calling his name.
• The wood canoe was a beauty, with her gentle curves and natural finish.
• The parched soil eagerly swallowed the rain.
• His mind screeched to a halt.
• The biting cold stole his breath away.

All these descriptions are figurative, not literal. The wood canoe, by its very nature, is genderless, but the use of a feminine pronoun reveals how the narrator cherishes it. Likewise, oceans don’t speak, but this personification conveys the narrator’s yearning to visit the sea.

Personification isn’t purely restricted to human attributes, though. Consider these examples:

• Copies of her latest novel flew off the shelves.
• The smile melted off his face.

People and objects can’t fly, nor can they melt or spark. In these examples, personification is pulling attributes from other objects, as these lines evoke images of birds in flight and melting ice cream.

Personification in Idioms

Personification is also common in everyday speech, particularly in idioms.

• New York is “the city that never sleeps.” Cities aren’t living, breathing things, thus they don’t’ need to sleep. But this idiom is conveying how there are always people about, no matter the time of day or night, in this lively city.
• “Time flies when you’re having fun” doesn’t mean time is actually flying. Instead, it’s pointing out that that people tend to forget the clock when engaged with something fun and thus can’t mark the passage of time accurately.
• “Actions speak louder than words” means that a person’s behavior can be more revealing than their words, not that their actions or words literally speak.