Personification in Hamlet's Orations: Examples and Meaning

📚 Quick Study Guide

🔍 Definition: Personification is giving human qualities to inanimate objects or abstract ideas. 🎭 Purpose in Literature: It enhances imagery, creates deeper meaning, and connects readers emotionally. 🖋️ Hamlet's Use: Shakespeare uses personification in *Hamlet* to emphasize themes like mortality, revenge, and corruption. 📜 Examples: Look for instances where concepts like 'revenge' or 'death' are described as having human actions or feelings. 🧠 Analyzing Examples: When you find an example, ask yourself: What human quality is being attributed? How does this affect the meaning of the passage? 💡 Key Themes: Common themes linked to personification in *Hamlet* include deceit, madness, and the uncertainty of life. 📝 Remember: Pay attention to the context! Personification often works hand-in-hand with other literary devices.

🤔 Practice Quiz

1. Which of the following is the BEST example of personification?
   1. The sun was shining brightly.
   2. Death laid his icy hand on kings.
   3. The flowers were red and fragrant.
   4. He ran quickly down the street.
2. In *Hamlet*, what is a common abstract concept that Shakespeare personifies?
   1. Love
   2. Hate
   3. Revenge
   4. All of the above
3. How does personification typically affect the reader's understanding of a text?
   1. It makes the text more confusing.
   2. It simplifies the plot.
   3. It creates a stronger emotional connection.
   4. It has no significant impact.
4. "Andсля that the earth, the which is our mother"— What human trait is being attributed to the earth?
   1. Cruelty
   2. Patience
   3. Maternity
   4. Indifference
5. Which theme is MOST enhanced by personification in *Hamlet*?
   1. Loyalty
   2. Honesty
   3. Mortality
   4. Friendship
6. "O, my offence is rank it smells to heaven" - What is being personified in this line?
   1. Heaven
   2. Offence
   3. Hamlet
   4. Smell
7. What effect does personifying revenge have on the play's overall message?
   1. It diminishes the seriousness of revenge.
   2. It makes revenge seem unavoidable and powerful.
   3. It portrays revenge as a rational choice.
   4. It suggests revenge is easily achieved.