Literary notes about Balustrade (AI summary)
Writers employ the term "balustrade" not only to denote an architectural feature but to evoke atmospheres of grandeur, division, and introspection. In some texts, the balustrade frames key characters or scenes, such as when a priest looms above it in a moment of solemn authority [1] or when a peacock, emblematic of refined dignity, perches atop one [2]. In other works, it serves as both a literal barrier and a metaphorical threshold—characters lean on it to glean insights, as seen when figures peering into vast expanses or mysterious depths are described with a balustrade providing a frame for their contemplation [3], [4]. This multifaceted use enriches the narrative by linking physical structure with emotional distance or transition.
- The priest’s figure now stood upright in the pulpit, two-thirds of its bulk, crowned by a massive red face, appearing above the balustrade.
— from Dubliners by James Joyce - Nothing, he was accustomed to say, had an air of greater state and dignity than a peacock perched upon an antique stone balustrade.
— from The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon by Washington Irving - In one of these moments he suddenly beheld the long window on the balcony, whose stone balustrade projected above his head, open mysteriously.
— from Notre-Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo - ‘He flung his arm out at the night beyond the stone balustrade.
— from Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad
