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Paradox
Definition of Personification
Personification is a type of figurative language in which non-human things are described as having human attributes, as in the sentence, "The rain poured down on the wedding guests, indifferent... read full definition
Personification is a type of figurative language in which non-human things are described as having human attributes, as in the sentence, "The rain poured down... read full definition
Personification is a type of figurative language in which non-human things are described as having human attributes, as in the... read full definition
Key Examples in Cannery Row
Chapter 15
Explanation and Analysis—Puppy Love:
In Chapter 15, Mack and his friends meet Darling the pointer puppy when the Captain gifts her to them. Darling will eventually grow up in the boys' care and develop a spirited personality, but when they meet her, she is still nursing from her mother. Mack and Darling's mother form an instant and humanlike bond in the following instance of personification:
The pointer bitch lay on her side, and Mack held a cloth saturated with epsom salts against her tick bite. Among her legs the big fat wiener pups nuzzled and bumped for milk and the bitch looked patiently up into Mack’s face saying, “You see how it is? I try to tell him but he doesn’t understand.”
Related Themes:
Chapter 31
Explanation and Analysis—The Gopher:
At first glance, Chapter 31 seems out of place. It's a story of a personified gopher on Cannery Row that almost reads like a fable:
Unlock with LitCharts A+A well-grown gopher took up residence in a thicket of mallow weeds in the vacant lot on Cannery Row. It was a perfect place [...]
Again he waited and squeaked beside his beautiful burrow in the beautiful place but no female ever came and after a while he had to move away. He had to move two blocks up the hill to a dahlia garden where they put out traps every night.
Related Themes:
