Previous
Parody
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
Part 1, Chapter 11
Explanation and Analysis—The Golden Age:
When Don Quixote and Sancho Panza join a group of goatherds, who generously share their food and wine with the strangers, Quixote delivers a rhapsodic speech about the “golden age of man” in which he repeatedly employs personification:
The limpid fountains and the running streams offered him their delectable and transparent waters in magnificent abundance. In the clefts of rocks and in the hollows of trees, diligent and prudent bees formed their commonwealths, offering to every hand, without requesting anything in return, the rich harvest of their sweet labours. The sturdy cork-oaks, without any other inducement than that of their own generosity, shed their thick, light bark, with which men first covered their houses, supported on rustic poles, only as a defence against the inclemencies of the heavens. All then was peace, all was friendship, all was harmony [...]
Touched by the kindness of the goatherds, who are perplexed by his eccentricity but nevertheless treat him with sympathy, Quixote compares the present age of “iron” to the past “golden age” in which, he claims, nature provided everything to humans in abundance, without labor. In his speech, he repeatedly personifies the natural world. First, he notes that the rivers and streams “offered” humankind clean water “in abundance.” Next, he recounts that bees formed “commonwealths,” or states, offering “the rich harvest of their sweet labours” freely to humanity. Last, he claims that oak trees deliberately “shed their thick, light bark” so that humans could build houses, out of a spirit of “generosity.” These acts of personification present a vision of a world in which humans and natural elements live together in harmony, like helpful neighbors. Though his speech only confuses the goatherds, it reflects Quixote’s highly idealistic personality.
Related Themes:
