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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 Oliver Twist
Chapter 5
Explanation and Analysis—Institutions as People:
In Chapter 5, Mr. Bumble drops in on Mr. Sowerberry. To explain why Mr. Bumble doesn't ask about Oliver while he is there, the narrator personifies the parish Oliver was born into as an overwhelmed parent:
[Oliver] needn’t have taken the trouble to shrink from Mr Bumble’s glance, however; for that functionary [...] thought that now the undertaker had got Oliver upon trial, the subject was better avoided, until such time as he should be firmly bound for seven years, and all danger of his being returned upon the hands of the parish should be thus effectually and legally overcome.
Related Themes:
Chapter 24
Explanation and Analysis—Death Discriminates:
An instance of personification occurs in Chapter 24, when Old Sally is dying. One of the women Mrs. Corney finds tending to her says:
Unlock with LitCharts A+We have none of us long to wait for Death. Patience, patience! he’ll be here soon enough for us all.
Related Themes:
Chapter 28
Explanation and Analysis—Unwholesome Wind:
An instance of imagery that relies on personification occurs in Chapter 28, when the narrator finally describes what happened to Oliver after the attempted burglary at the Maylies' house several chapters before. The narrator returns to Oliver lying injured in the ditch where Sikes left him:
Unlock with LitCharts A+The air grew colder as day came slowly on, and the mist rolled along the ground like a dense cloud of smoke; the grass was wet, the pathways and low places were all mire and water, and the damp breath of an unwholesome wind went languidly by with a hollow moaning. Still Oliver lay motionless and insensible on the spot where Sikes had left him.
Related Themes:
