Poetry Prescription: personification

​It’s time for another blog post about the use of poetic devices in picture book writing. Today, we’ll take a look at the poetic device: Personification

Personification gives human qualities to an animal or object. This helps to create mood, interest or drama.

I used personification to my advantage to create a little drama in a poem about Abraham Lincoln’s stovepipe hat.

​Take a closer look at this mask poem from my poetry-collection THE SUPERLATIVE A. LINCOLN: Poems About Our 16th President (art by Dave Szalay). Titled “Best Use of an Accessory: Lincoln’s Stovepipe Hat Speaks Out”, how do you think the hat feels from the tone of this piece?

We don’t need a leather briefcase.
We don’t want an attaché.
You can keep that canvas knapsack.
I’m a traveling valet.
 
Abe writes notes upon my flat top.
He tucks letters in my band.
I’m his silken compact office,
and I’m always close at hand.

​Once I began to write this poem from the stovepipe hat’s point-of-view, I began to think about what the hat had to say . . . what was on its mind? I first thought about the hat’s functionality. Many people are not aware that Lincoln’s stovepipe hat served many purposes:

• Lincoln used the interior of his hat to carry important letters, notes, and correspondence tucked into the band. (This habit harkens back to his New Salem days as postmaster when Lincoln took it upon himself to deliver mail to residents who hadn’t picked up mail at the post office.)
• At times, Lincoln used the hat’s flat top as a writing surface.
• And of course, our 16th president’s hat also protected him from inclement weather.

All in all, Lincoln’s stovepipe hat was a pretty handy accessory. But had it ever been recognized as such?
 
I decided to take the approach that the stovepipe hat was a bit put-off by other carrying devices, such as briefcases or knapsacks (devices that did exist in the mid 1800’s so I was historically accurate), because the hat could handle the function of transporting key documents by itself. That realization also gave me my tone for the poem. It was my “Aha!” moment … the hat was going to be a bit sassy. Frankly, Lincoln’s stovepipe hat had been feeling underestimated and underappreciated for well over a century— and the hat was finally going to have its due!
 
The poem I wrote became one of my favorites in the collection. . . who can resist a sassy stovepipe hat?

Add personification to your writing toolbox! Do you have a poem in which you can make an object have a distinctive voice? Something to consider. I’ll see you back here next month. Happy writing!
 
by Eileen Meyer, Rhyme Doctor