Giving human traits, emotions, or behaviors to non-human things like animals, objects, or forces of nature.
Anthropomorphism is the technique of attributing human characteristics to something that isn't human. Unlike personification, which is usually a brief poetic flourish ('the wind whispered'), anthropomorphism goes further by creating fully realized non-human characters who think, speak, and behave like people. Think talking animals with jobs and anxieties, sentient robots navigating friendships, or a house that feels lonely. The non-human element becomes a lens for exploring very human questions from a fresh angle.
Anthropomorphism is one of the oldest storytelling moves in the book, and for good reason. It lets you explore sensitive or complicated human experiences - grief, prejudice, identity - through a layer of distance that makes the themes feel approachable rather than preachy. It also forces you to think hard about what makes a character feel human, which sharpens your characterization skills across all your writing.
The farm animals' revolution-turned-dictatorship is one of the most famous uses of anthropomorphism as political allegory.
The rabbits feel deeply human in their fears and courage, yet Adams grounds them in real rabbit behavior and ecology.
A robot stranded in the wilderness learns to survive by observing and connecting with anthropomorphized animals, blending tech and nature.
Keep some traits of the original nature. A talking cat should still be bothered by loud noises and fascinated by movement.
If animals talk, does that change how humans treat them? Think through the logical consequences of your premise.
Personification is a figure of speech ('the sun smiled'). Anthropomorphism is a sustained character choice ('the sun woke up grumpy and decided to hide behind clouds all day').
Pick an everyday object from your desk - a pen, a mug, a phone charger. Write a 500-word scene from its perspective as it goes through a typical day. Give it a personality, fears, and a small goal it wants to accomplish before the day ends.