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Pathos
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
Chapter 1
Explanation and Analysis—In Media Res:
At the beginning of the novel, prefacing Chapter 1, Eliot includes an epigraph. This epigraph dwells on the nature of both poetry and science in relation to time, personifying the two disciplines:
Even science, the strict measurer, is obliged to start with a make-believe unit, and must fix on a point in the stars’ unceasing journey when his sidereal clock shall pretend that time is at Nought. His less accurate grandmother Poetry has always been understood to start in the middle; but on reflection it appears that her proceeding is not very different from his; since Science, too, reckons backward as well as forward, divides his unit into billions, and with his clock-finger at Nought really sets off in medias res.
This epigraph connects to prominent themes of development and personal growth in the novel, serving as a meditation on the nature of meaning-making. Both "Science" and "Poetry," as individuals (and disciplines), must to a certain extent create or derive their own meaning. Scientific units, for example, are means of measuring and contextualizing the known universe—but they have not always existed. Units had to be created by a human. They are an example of meaning-making. Both Science and Poetry, also, must "reckon backwards" and operate "in media res," attempting to understand a process already set in motion.
This meditation on poetry, science, time, and meaning-making serves as a neat allegory for the questions of identity and self-discovery raised in Daniel Deronda. Like "Science" and "Poetry," Daniel himself must begin in media res, attempting to derive an active understanding of himself by looking backwards.
Related Themes:
Explanation and Analysis—Vanity:
In the following example of personification from Chapter 1, the narrator constructs an elaborate figurative landscape as a means of analyzing Gwendolen's psyche:
The general conviction that we are admirable does not easily give way before a single negative; rather when any of Vanity’s large family, male or female, find their performance received coldly, they are apt to believe that a little more of it will win over the unaccountable dissident. In Gwendolen’s habits of mind it had been taken for granted that she knew what was admirable and that she herself was admired.
The narrator personifies "Vanity" to illustrate Gwendolen's relationship with the concept. At the beginning of the novel, she is indeed a vain girl, bold in assuming that she is entitled to the attention and admiration of others. In this passage, the narrator asserts that those in "Vanity's large family" often assume that dissent or critique of their person is an anomaly. A vain person, holding a preternaturally high opinion of themselves, is wont to assume that others share their opinion. A single dissenter must, by that logic, be an outlier. At this stage in her personal journey, Gwendolen lacks the self-awareness to critique her own vanity, simply assuming that others think highly of her rather than taking steps to check her ego.
Related Themes:
