Read these lines from emily dickinson's "712" ("because i could not stop for death"): because i could not stop for death – he kindly stopped for me – the carriage held but just ourselves – and immortality. what is one purpose of the personification in this excerpt?
a. it links the concepts of death with the carriage.
b. it makes death seem friendly and familiar.
c. it compares growing old to taking a journey.
d. it makes the carriage seem like a peer to the speaker.

Literary devices are employed by the authors for a specified purpose to solve which could be either to enhance the beauty and efficacy of the work by providing emphasis or clarifying a point in a distinctive style. Similarly, in this excerpt from Emily Dickinson's '712'; the purpose of personifying 'death' is 'to make death seem friendly and familiar'.

The poem '712' deals with the theme of death with a supernatural feel. Dickinson treats 'death' strangely and imaginatively by describing a personal confrontation with 'death' as a character. The author personifies death as a carriage to establish a kind of familiarity with it. The speaker enhances the point by saying that it would take her on a supernatural journey over the grave. Thus, option B is the correct answer.