Creative Writing Prompt: anthropomorphism

I have ALWAYS loved words. I love learning words, and I love using words. My dad and I like to impress each other with excessively pompous and excitingly lengthy new words. (His favourite word is sonder: the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own; mine is probably serendipity or elucidate). So, I just love anthropomorphism, because I have to slow right down just to say it. 

I had a collection of writing prompts that just didn't seem to fit into a lesson plan, but suddenly it occurred to me that we could talk about inanimate objects, and then all of these little ideas I had been having had a home: it turned out I was just itching to hear stories about things and objects, and how they feel about stuff. (I think the next iteration of this lesson plan will include a discussion on apostrophe, but this is it for now!)

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Anthropomorphism Stories (an-THROW-po-MORPH-is-m)

Anthropomorphism is a type of figurative language where you ascribe human values onto non-human things. This can include animals, seasons, furniture … almost anything! As soon as you write that “the sun smiles,” or the “dog feels betrayed,” you are giving the objects the characteristics of humans. 

Usually, we use this type of figurative language to express an idea: we aren’t actually saying that the sun is smiling, but we are saying that the sun is round and warm and bright. Anthropomorphism is a creative way of describing something metaphorically.

In today’s activity, you will use more than just a few descriptions to create a metaphor: instead, you will write a story where you continuously personify a single object. For example, you might write a story about a lost marble. You would give it human qualities in order to express its sadness, as well as its determination to find its home.

Choose one of the following scenarios, and write an anthropomorphic tale to describe a very human story using non-human objects.

1)      Tell the story of a day in the life of the planets in the solar system.

2)      Tell the story of a young person who suddenly meets the days of the week … and they act just like people.

3)      Describe the kinds of conversations that happen in your kitchen when you’re not there.

4)      Describe what trees say to each other, and think about how long a tree conversation might be!

5)      Tell the story of a dusty old record player that just wants to play his favourite song.

6)      Tell the story of an old house with many picture frames on the walls: the people in the paintings often speak to the inhabitants!

7)      Darkness and Light are friends; what do they do together?

8)      Silence is lonely, but one day he meets a little boy, and …