Question at position 11 What poetic device is used in the following excerpt? Hello darkness, my old friendI've come to talk with you againpersonificationhyperbolealliterationimagerysimileiambic pentameter

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BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Let's break down the excerpt and the options to see which device fits best.
Option 1: personification. The line addresses darkness as if it were a person who can be a friend and with whom the speaker can talk. This treating of an abstract concept as a living being is classic personification, so this option aligns well with the text.
Option 2: hyperbole. Hyperbole involves intentional exaggeration for emphasis. The excerpt does not exaggerate darkness or the speaker's feelings to an extreme; it presents a calm, reflective tone, so hyperbole is not the primary device here.
Option 3: alliteration. Alliteration is the repetition of initial consonant sounds in nearby words (e.g., “silent seas”). In the given lines, there isn’t a noticeable pattern of repeated initial sounds driving the rhythm or mood, so alliteration is unlikely.
Option 4: imagery. Imagery uses descriptive language to evoke the senses. While the lines do create a mood, the most salient feature is addressing darkness as a person rather than painting vivid sensory details, so imagery is not the strongest match.
Option 5: simile. A simile uses words like or as to compare two things. The excerpt contains no explicit comparison with like or as, so a simile is not present here.
Option 6: iambic pentameter. This refers to a specific metrical pattern (five iambic feet per line). The excerpt’s line breaks and rhythm are typical of a lyric cadence, but identifying a precise meter from the short excerpt alone is unreliable, and the question asks for the device most clearly used. Therefore, iambic pentameter is not the defining device in this line.
In summary, among the options, personification best explains why darkness is described as a ‘friend’ and as something to talk to, which is the central device at play in this excerpt.

Question at position 11 What poetic device is used in the following excerpt? Hello darkness, my old friendI've come to talk with you againpersonificationhyperbolealliterationimagerysimileiambic pentameter

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