Question

How is the following quote personification?

To bind up the nation's wounds(Paragraph 5)
a. A person is doing the binding.
b. A person caused the wounds.
c. A wound is something people have, but a nation cannot truly have a wound that needs healing. In this way, nation's wounds is personification.
d. America is binding up wounds and caring for the widows and injured soldier; therefore it is making the war personal, which is personification.

Answer 1

The quote 'To bind up the nation's wounds' is an example of personification because it attributes human characteristics to the nation, such as the ability to be wounded and require healing.

Step-by-step explanation:

The quote “To bind up the nation's wounds” from Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural address is an example of personification. This is because, according to option c, a wound is something people have, and a nation cannot truly have a physical wound that requires bandaging. In literature, personification is a figure of speech where human qualities are given to animals, objects, or ideas.

In this context, the nation is personified because it is endowed with the ability to suffer and need healing, as a human would after being wounded. This metaphor suggests the need for healing after the Civil War, envisioning the country as a person who has been hurt and needs to recover.