Personification: Giving Human Traits to Things

Recognize personification, when objects or nature are described as if they were human.

Personification gives human actions or feelings to something that is not human, like an object, an animal, or part of nature. 'The wind whispered through the trees' is personification, because wind cannot really whisper; only people can. The author wants you to imagine a soft, gentle sound.

To spot it, look for a non-human subject doing something only a person can do: smile, dance, complain, sleep, or grab. Read: 'The old car groaned as it climbed the hill. ' A car cannot groan like a tired person, but the word helps you hear the engine straining. Ask: What human action is described, and what real sound or movement is the author helping me imagine?

• 1Personification gives human traits to non-human things.
• 2Look for objects or nature doing human actions.
• 3Ask what real thing the human action helps you picture.