Personification or metaphor?

Question

Is this excerpt from Richard Wright's 'Black Boy" a metaphor or personification?

"The locomotive of my heart was rushing down a dangerously steep slope."

Or is is neither?

Please explain!

Answer 1

If you really wanted to, I believe you could argue for either one or the other. (even for both if you really wanted to)

Personally, I think it's a metaphor. Reason being, the "locomotive" is describing "heart" and "rushing" is describing the actions of a locomotive

Answer 2

i say it is a personification.

you are saying the heart is a train and it is going down a slope.

if it was a metaphor you would have said my heart was rushing down a dangerously steep slope or something like that.

that is why, sorry i do not have a super good explanation, but i strongly think it is a personification.

Answer 3

it's a metaphor bcos it is a direct comparison.

the term personification means to make a non livin thing living by personifying it but a metaphor is a direct comparison without the use of as or like

but in this case the quote is a metaphor because the heart is being compared to a vehicle or a machine

hope i helped

=)

Answer 4

I would say it is a metaphor because a comparison is being made between two things. "My heart" is being compared to the locomotive, so I think it meets the definition of metaphor, which compares two seemingly unrelated objects - someone's heart and a train.

Answer 5

A metaphor is describing something as something else, without using "like" or "as". So, "her skin of milk".

Personification is giving human characteristics to non-human things. "The trees sobbed in agony", or something like that.

So, I'd say metaphor.

Answer 6

personification... he writes that a heart has a locomotive, which is the engine of a train, and it's riding on the road or the railroad...

Answer 7

neither

personificaton - in which human characteristics are given to nonhuman things*

Examples of personification:

The wind whispered to them as they ran through the woods

The heat ripped the breath from her lungs

The leaves danced in the wind


Metaphor- a poetic comparison that does not use the words like or as*



Examples of metaphors:

She is a graceful swan

He is a golden god

They are honey from the honeycomb


i hope that hepled

Answer 8

it's more of a metaphor where he's comparing his heart to a train.