Assignment:- Paper: 109- Literary Theory & Criticism and Indian Aesthetics

 

Personification and its Significance in I. A. Richards' Practical Criticism

This blog is an assignment component for Semester 2, Paper No. 109, focused on Literary Theory & Criticism and Indian Aesthetics. Assigned by Dr. Dilip Barad sir from the Department of English, MKBU.

Personal Details

Name: Smruti Jitubhai Vadher

Batch: M.A. Semester-2 (2024-26) 

Roll No.: 28

Enrollment no.: 5108240034

E-mail address: vadhersmruti@gmail.com

Assignment Details

Paper: 109- Literary Theory & Criticism and Indian Aesthetics

Paper code: 22402

Subject: Personification and its Significance in I.A. Richards' Practical Criticism

Date of Submission: 17th April 2025

Submitted to: Smt. Sujata Binoy Gardi, Department of English, Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University. 

Abstract

This assignment examines the concept of personification within I.A. Richards' framework of Practical Criticism, exploring how this influential literary theorist understood and analyzed this rhetorical device. Richards' innovative approach reveals personification not merely as stylistic ornamentation but as a fundamental cognitive process that shapes reader interpretation. The paper investigates Richards' understanding of personification as a specialized form of metaphor, its psychological foundations, its relationship to other figurative devices, and its effects on reader response. By analyzing Richards' experimental work with student readers, the essay demonstrates how personification serves as a critical point of entry into broader questions about meaning-making, cognition, and the relationship between human experience and textual representation. The research draws connections between Richards' early 20th-century insights and contemporary approaches in cognitive poetics and ecocriticism, highlighting the continued relevance of his work for understanding how figurative language operates within and beyond literary contexts.

Table of Contents

I. Introduction

• Context of I.A. Richards' "Practical Criticism"

• Significance of personification within Richards' framework

• Thesis statement

II. Richards' Approach to Figurative Language

• The experimental method of Practical Criticism

• The "context theorem of meaning"

• Tenor and vehicle: Richards' theory of metaphor

• Figurative language as cognitive process

III. Personification in Richards' Critical Framework

• Personification as special case of metaphor

• "Displacement of reference" in personification

• Reader responses to personification

• Projection and its significance

IV. Psychological Foundations of Personification

• Anthropomorphism as cognitive tendency

• Embodied cognition and personification

• Emotional dimensions of personification

• Interanimation through personification

V. Personification's Relationship to Other Figurative Devices

• Personification and metaphor

• Personification and symbolism

• Personification, metonymy, and synecdoche

• Interactive networks of figurative language

VI. Practical Application: Richards' Analysis of Personification in Poetry

• Case study: Donne's "Death Be Not Proud"

• Case study: Blake's "The Tyger"

• Failed personification and reader resistance

• The "as if" mode of thinking

VII. Beyond Rhetoric: Personification's Broader Significance

• Cultural and cognitive dimensions

• Anticipating conceptual blending theory

• Ideological implications of personification

• Gender and personification

VIII. Personification and Reader Response

• Common patterns of misreading personification

• Imaginative participation

• Pedagogical approaches to personification

• Balancing immersion and critical distance

IX. Contemporary Relevance of Richards' Approach to Personification

• Influence on cognitive poetics

• Applications in ecocriticism

• Pedagogical legacy

• Digital humanities applications

X. Conclusion

• Synthesis of Richards' contributions

• Personification as cognitive bridge

• Contemporary implications

• Future directions for research

References

Introduction

I.A. Richards' groundbreaking work "Practical Criticism," published in 1929, revolutionized literary analysis by introducing a systematic approach to understanding figurative language. Among the various forms of figurative expressions that Richards examines, personification—the attribution of human qualities to non-human entities—holds a particularly significant position. This essay explores the concept of personification within Richards' framework of Practical Criticism, examining how Richards understood this rhetorical device, its psychological underpinnings, its relationship to other figures of speech, and its broader implications for literary interpretation. Richards' innovative approach to personification reveals it to be not merely a stylistic ornament but a fundamental cognitive process that shapes how readers interact with and derive meaning from texts.

Richards' Approach to Figurative Language

I.A. Richards' Practical Criticism emerged as a response to traditional literary criticism, which he felt often lacked rigor and objectivity. His experimental method involved presenting poems to Cambridge undergraduates without providing information about the authors or historical contexts, then analyzing their interpretive responses (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 3-12). This approach foregrounded the text itself and readers' direct engagement with it, particularly their interaction with figurative language.

For Richards, figurative language was not merely decorative but fundamental to how meaning is constructed. In his earlier work, "The Philosophy of Rhetoric" (1936), Richards had already developed his influential theory of metaphor, proposing the terms "tenor" and "vehicle" to describe the components of metaphorical expressions (96-97). The tenor represents the subject being described, while the vehicle is the figure used to create the comparison. This conceptual framework underlies his treatment of personification in Practical Criticism.

According to Richards, figurative language functions as a "context theorem of meaning," wherein words derive their significance not in isolation but through their relationships with other words and the broader context (Richards, "Principles" 70). This perspective is crucial for understanding how personification operates within texts and why its effects can be so potent.

Personification in Richards' Critical Framework

While Richards does not dedicate a separate chapter to personification in "Practical Criticism," his analysis of student responses to poems containing personification reveals his understanding of this device. Richards identifies personification as a special case of metaphor in which the vehicle is always human or possesses human qualities, while the tenor is non-human. This creates what Richards terms a "displacement of reference," where readers must simultaneously hold in mind both the literal non-human entity and its humanized representation (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 191).

Richards observes that personification often triggers strong responses in readers, either positive or negative. Some readers embrace the humanization of natural forces or abstract concepts as illuminating, while others reject it as artificial or sentimental (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 202-209). This split response fascinated Richards, who saw it as evidence of the psychological complexity underlying our engagement with figurative language.

In examining student responses to poems like Wordsworth's "The World is Too Much With Us," where natural elements are personified ("The Sea that bares her bosom to the moon"), Richards notes how personification can create what he terms "projection"—the attribution of human emotions and motivations to external phenomena (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 217). This projection, according to Richards, reveals as much about the reader as it does about the text itself.

Psychological Foundations of Personification

Richards' approach to personification is deeply rooted in his interest in psychological processes. He argues that personification taps into fundamental cognitive tendencies—specifically, anthropomorphism, which he sees as a natural human inclination to understand the non-human world in human terms (Richards, "Philosophy" 110-112). This perspective aligns with what modern cognitive linguists like Lakoff and Johnson would later describe as embodied cognition—the idea that our conceptual systems are fundamentally shaped by our experiences as physical beings (Hamilton 412).

For Richards, personification is effective because it makes abstract concepts tangible by mapping them onto the familiar domain of human experience. When death is personified as "a grim reaper," for instance, readers can grasp the concept through familiar human attributes and actions. This cognitive mapping provides what Richards calls "interanimation"—the mutual illumination of ideas through their juxtaposition (Richards, "Philosophy" 125).

Richards also explores the emotional dimensions of personification. He argues that personification can create a sense of intimate relationship between readers and aspects of the natural world or abstract concepts, fostering emotional engagement with ideas that might otherwise remain distant or theoretical (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 240). This emotional resonance explains why personification remains prevalent in both poetry and prose.

Personification's Relationship to Other Figurative Devices

In Richards' framework, personification exists within a network of related figurative devices. He situates it particularly close to metaphor but distinguishes it through its specific humanizing quality. Richards argues that personification often works in tandem with other figures of speech to create complex webs of meaning (Richards, "Philosophy" 117-120).

The relationship between personification and symbol is especially significant in Richards' analysis. While personification attributes human qualities to non-human entities, symbols may represent abstract ideas without necessarily humanizing them. However, Richards notes that personification often evolves into symbolism through repeated cultural usage—Death as a reaper began as personification but has become so established that it functions symbolically.

Richards also examines how personification relates to metonymy and synecdoche. He suggests that personification sometimes operates through metonymic relationships, as when a nation is personified through its leader or representative figure ("Russia declared war"). This observation anticipates later research on conceptual metonymy by scholars like Radden and Kovecses.

Practical Application: Richards' Analysis of Personification in Poetry

Richards' examination of student responses to poetry containing personification reveals several patterns in how this device functions and how readers react to it. In analyzing responses to Donne's "Death Be Not Proud," Richards observes how personification enables the poet to confront and challenge death by addressing it as an adversary (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 264). This rhetorical strategy transforms an abstract concept into an entity that can be reasoned with, defied, or conquered.

Similarly, in examining responses to Blake's personifications in "The Tyger" ("What immortal hand or eye / Could frame thy fearful symmetry?"), Richards notes how personification can create a sense of agency behind natural phenomena, raising philosophical questions about creation and design (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 278). The personification here serves not merely as ornamentation but as a conceptual framework that shapes the poem's ontological inquiry.

Richards is particularly interested in how personification can fail when readers perceive it as forced or artificial. He cites student responses dismissing certain personifications as "pathetic fallacy"—the erroneous attribution of human feelings to nature (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 294). This criticism, Richards argues, often stems from readers' inability to enter into what he calls the "as if" mode of thinking that figurative language requires—the capacity to temporarily accept the humanization while maintaining awareness of its figurative nature.

Beyond Rhetoric: Personification's Broader Significance

Richards' analysis of personification extends beyond its rhetorical function to its broader cultural and cognitive significance. He suggests that personification reflects fundamental patterns of human thought that transcend literary contexts. Our tendency to personify, Richards argues, reveals our need to relate to the world in human terms, to find familiarity in the unfamiliar (Richards, "Philosophy" 132-135).

This perspective anticipates contemporary cognitive approaches to figurative language. Modern scholars like Mark Turner and Gilles Fauconnier, building on Richards' insights, have developed theories of conceptual blending that explain how personification works by mapping human attributes onto non-human domains, creating emergent conceptual structures.

Richards also recognizes personification's ideological dimensions. When natural forces or abstract concepts are personified, they often reflect cultural values and power structures. For instance, the personification of nations as female figures ("Mother Russia," "Lady Liberty") carries gendered implications that Richards encourages readers to interrogate (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 310). This critical awareness of personification's ideological underpinnings anticipates later developments in cultural criticism.

Personification and Reader Response

Central to Richards' Practical Criticism is its focus on actual reader responses rather than theoretical ideals. His analysis of how readers engage with personification reveals significant patterns in reception. Richards identifies several common "misreadings" that occur with personification, including:

1. Literal interpretation: Some readers fail to recognize personification as figurative and attempt to interpret it literally (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 325).
   
   

2. Over-extension: Other readers extend the personification beyond what the text supports, attributing additional human qualities not suggested by the original figure (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 327).
   
   

3. Rejection: Some readers categorically dismiss personification as artificial or sentimental, refusing to engage with its potential insights (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 330).
   
   

These patterns of misreading reveal broader issues in how readers approach figurative language. Richards argues that effective reading requires what he calls "imaginative participation"—the ability to temporarily inhabit the figurative world created by devices like personification while maintaining critical awareness (Richards, "How to Read a Page" 89). This balance between immersion and distance characterizes skilled reading.

Richards' pedagogical approach emphasizes developing this balanced engagement with personification. He advocates exercises that train readers to recognize personification, understand its operations, and evaluate its effectiveness without either naive acceptance or categorical rejection (Richards, "Practical Criticism" 340-345). This pedagogical dimension reflects Richards' broader commitment to developing "practical criticism" as both an analytical method and a teachable skill.

Contemporary Relevance of Richards' Approach to Personification

Richards' insights into personification continue to influence contemporary literary theory and cognitive linguistics. His emphasis on the psychological foundations of figurative language anticipates cognitive poetics, which examines how literary devices like personification reflect fundamental mental processes. Current scholars like Raymond W. Gibbs Jr. and Elena Semino have built upon Richards' work to develop more detailed cognitive models of how personification operates.

In ecocriticism, Richards' analysis of personification has proven particularly valuable. Environmental literary critics examine how personification of natural elements can either foster empathetic connection with the natural world or problematically impose human values on non-human entities. This dual potential of personification—to both illuminate and distort—aligns with Richards' nuanced approach to figurative language.

Richards' pedagogical emphasis also remains relevant in contemporary approaches to teaching critical reading. His methods for helping students recognize and critically engage with personification continue to inform classroom practices, encouraging readers to move beyond superficial encounters with figurative language toward more sophisticated understanding.

Conclusion

I.A. Richards' treatment of personification within his framework of Practical Criticism reveals this figure of speech to be far more than a decorative literary device. Through his pioneering analysis of how readers actually respond to personification in poetry, Richards demonstrates that personification operates as a complex cognitive mechanism that shapes how we conceptualize abstract ideas and non-human entities.

Richards' approach to personification—emphasizing its psychological foundations, its relationship to other figurative devices, its effects on readers, and its broader cultural significance—continues to offer valuable insights for literary analysis. By understanding personification not merely as a rhetorical technique but as a fundamental mode of human cognition, Richards helps us appreciate how this device works to bridge the gap between human experience and the non-human world, making the abstract concrete and the distant intimate.

In an age increasingly concerned with human relationships to technology, nature, and abstract systems, Richards' insights into personification remain remarkably relevant. His practical criticism provides not only analytical tools for understanding how personification functions in texts but also a framework for examining how this figure of speech reflects and shapes our ways of conceptualizing the world beyond ourselves.

Reference

Barad, Dilip. “(PDF) i.a. Richards - Figurative Language - Practical Criticism.” ResearchGate, 4 Jan. 2024, www.researchgate.net/publication/377146653_IA_Richards_-_Figurative_Language_-_Practical_Criticism. Accessed 17 Apr. 2025.

Hamilton, Craig A. “Mapping the Mind and the Body: On W. H. Auden’s Personifications.” Style, vol. 36, no. 3, 2002, pp. 408–27. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5325/style.36.3.408. Accessed 17 Apr. 2025.

Richards, Ivor Armstrong. The Philosophy of Rhetoric. Oxford University Press, 1936.

Richards, Ivor Armstrong. Practical Criticism: A Study of Literary Judgment. Transaction Publishers, 2004.

Richards, I. A. Principles of Literary Criticism. Taylor & Francis Group, 2001.