Pathetic Fallacy
The pathetic fallacy is giving nature human feelings — grieving clouds, angry seas — because the observer is feeling them.
Full definition of Pathetic Fallacy →:: COMPARE ::
Pathetic fallacyvsPersonification
The short answer
Personification is the genus and morally neutral — a poet can personify a river with complete detachment. Pathetic fallacy is the emotion-driven species Ruskin condemned, where the writer's feeling has leaked into the description without their noticing.
Side by side
| Aspect | Pathetic fallacy | Personification |
|---|---|---|
| Cause | The observer's emotion | A deliberate choice |
| Ruskin's verdict | A fault | Neutral |
| Category | Species | Genus |
| Can be cold | No | Yes |
What each one means
Personification
The contrast above sets out how Personification differs from Pathetic Fallacy on the points that actually matter.