Jan's Master Class--PERSONIFICATION

[CatLin]

Thanks, Jan! I may have slipped in a cliche by accident - I had to keep stopping myself.. I'm a sucker for a good cliche.

1. leaf
One lonely, dry leaf clung to the limb with its last breath.


2. coffee pot
The coffee pot waited expectantly for her to arise.

3. cloud
The angry clouds collided overhead, the resultant thunder condemning her with anger.

4. bed
Her bed called out to her, inviting her to lay her head down for the night.

5. river
The river skipped merrily over the rocks and hurried around the bend before falling headlong over the cliff.

6. shoes
She couldn't fault her shoes for not wanting to continue the trek; they were loafers, after all.

7. sun
The sun played hide and seek with the clouds throughout the afternoon.

8. car
After a few coughs and hiccups, her faithful old car turned over with a groan.

9. wind
The mournful wail of the wind penetrated the windows she'd shut against the impending storm.

10. clock
She argued with the clock; it was counting off the minutes much too fast this morning.


And my link:
http://www.faithwriters.com/wc-article- ... p?id=15556

I think I used personification several times in "The Roar of the Dandelions", giving the weeds human characteristics, but I'll let you be the judge.

[BusBoss]

She clung to the fragile branch for dear life, buffeted by the brutal autumn winds. A delicate, little leaf from the time she was just a bud, she never grew to the magnificent size of her siblings. Now she grew weary as her beautiful green hue drained from her veins. Another gust, she bids farewell.

We're floating ... flying miles over the ocean. There are many of us, swirling without care. The wind pushes us ... we resist to no avail. We become stronger ... dark and heavy, the group of us, but still we are herded toward our demise. We grow angry, fighting withall our might, but the battle is lost. We cry on the ground below.

"Eeewwww! Don't you ever wash those things before you shove them down my throat?" The sneaker gagged at the stench of Derek's foot. "You rubbed your toes against my tongue again." He coughed. "Please tell me we're going to the mall ... there's a pretty set of heels I've had my eyes on."

Good enough for homework?

I believe the first paragraph or so of Man Hunt Would be personification.

And The Real Challenge (as cheesy as it is) would be personification also.

[beff]

I just thought of another good one for coffee maker.

The coffee maker heaved its thick contents into my cup. Obviously, something had gone terribly wrong.

LOL -- I LOVE this one.

[hwnj]

I noticed that you edited the lesson to reflect Yvonne's and my rut of starting with "the." Having established my challenge entry direction, though not yet submitted, I will attempt to rise to your ExtraCredit challenge. AT least I may get EC somewhere.

1. Staring at the puddle until it evaporated, the vain leaf enjoyed its reflection.
2. Bemoaning that it had not been created a teapot, the coffee pot gagged as the noxious brew filtered through it once again.
3. Climbing above its fellows, the cloud believed it reigned supreme.
4. Shivering, the bed ashamedly awaited the return of its freshly laundered clothes.
5. Flooded farmers wished the river had not tumbled out of bed.
6. laced with sarcasm, the velcro shoes declared disdain for their lazy owner with a good tongue-lashing.
7. Backlighting the rainbow, the sun rejoiced to share a ray of hope.
8. Having had a combustion engine for so long, the car found the electric replacement totally shocking.
9. Gossiping was the whispering wind's favorite pastime.
10. After screeching its alarm for two hours without response, the clock was really ticked.

Hope you enjoyed the puns, too.

[glorybee]

Excellent, Colin! Try using this once or twice in your next piece--maybe it will help with that "telling, not showing" problem.

[glorybee]

Hey, Sonny--

That's delightful! I think, though, if we go by what havah said in this thread, your poem shows more anthropomorphism than personification. Your snowman is given the ability to think--he's sentient, he's a character. It's only personification if he stays a frozen, not-thinking snowman, but he's given a human characteristic just for the literary effect. Something like this:

The sun beat down on the snowman relentlessly, causing a tear to fall from its coal-black eyes.

See the difference? In your poem, the snowman actually has a personality. In my little sentence, I'm just comparing the smowman's melting face to a crying human.