How Does John Updike Use Personification In Marching Through A Novel

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In John Updikes poem ‘Marching Through a Novel’ he utilizes personification to bring the novel and his characters to life. The way in which he displays himself as a general further develops the language needed to convey the relationship between the novelist and the characters in the novel. Updike begins the poem by personifying the characters as if he was a general leading an army. “My characters greet me with misty faces though chilled”, this line describes the characters as willing but scared soldiers ready to begin training. When Updike describes his characters as changing “clothes and mannerisms” with “instant obedience”, he further utilizes the technique of bringing his characters to life, and displays a connection between

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