Final answer:
In plays, personification establishes a human connection to abstract concepts, deepening the audience's emotional engagement and highlighting central themes.
Step-by-step explanation:
The purpose of using personification at the beginning of a play is to quickly establish a connection between the audience and the abstract ideas presented on stage. By attributing human characteristics to non-human elements, such as poverty or the natural landscape, the audience can relate to and empathize with them. This rhetorical device serves to deepen the emotional response and engagement, helping to set the tone for the play's themes of existential angst, the absurdity of the human condition, and the struggle against complacency in the face of a bewildering world. Personification can also act as a trickster, challenging the audience's perception and sparking a deeper consideration of the play's messages.