Personification

Strong writers wrestle with and conquer the figures of speech that make their writing roar. One that can elevate your writing with a little practice is personification, the figure of speech that gives human or animal characteristics to animals or objects. It’s a method that has been around for a long time. Read Isaiah 55:12. His trees didn’t just grow straight and tall-they clapped their hands! Try journaling about the trees in your back yard and practice personification by giving them human characteristics. (note that I am using this as an example of personification, but it is closely related to zoomorphism and anthropomorphism, if you wish to study these further. The purpose of this post is simply to encourage you to familiarize yourself with the figures of speech that will improve your writing)

The following is an excerpt from “The African Violets” bybjo. Here, instead of merely describing the effects of the sudden storm, it becomes a raging bull assaulting the landscape and threatening the safety of the people in its proximity.

   We were nearly finished repotting the violets when a sudden gust of wind jarred the porch screen and one of the new starts hit the porch floor leaving the tender cutting in a pile of potting soil and pieces of the shattered clay pot. The storm charged in like an angry bull, snorting and kicking up puffs of dirt to warn, stomping the low evergreen shrubs, breaking off branches from the sassafras trees that lined the back half of the gravel drive, and sending everyone running for the safety of the nearest structure.