Literary notes about Bantering (AI summary)
In literature, "bantering" is employed to convey a tone of playful wit and informal repartee that can range from light-hearted teasing to ironic commentary. It often marks moments when characters engage in quick, jocular exchanges that both diffuse tension and reveal underlying nuances in their relationships. For instance, a bantering tone may emerge in a solemn setting to unexpectedly lighten the mood, as when characters trade clever remarks that mask earnest intent ([1], [2]). Authors use such language to illustrate the contrasts in personality or circumstance—be it the gentle ironies of conversation, as in a casually humorous remark that underlies deeper feelings ([3], [4]), or the subtle interplay of intimacy and mockery that fuels dynamic relationships ([5], [6]). This kind of dialogue adds a vibrant texture to narrative interactions, making the characters' exchanges memorable and reflective of the complexities of human communication.
- Hamlet, bantering Polonius, quotes part of the first stanza of a ballad entitled, Jephtha, Judge of Israel .
— from Shakspeare and His Times [Vol. 1 of 2] Including the Biography of the Poet; criticisms on his genius and writings; a new chronology of his plays; a disquisition on the on the object of his sonnets; and a history of the manners, customs, and amusements, superstitions, poetry, and elegant literature of his age by Nathan Drake - “Oh, I’m not going to separate the inseparables,” he said in his usual bantering tone.
— from Anna Karenina by graf Leo Tolstoy - By the way,” added Gringoire, looking at the archdeacon in a half bantering way, “are you still thinking of her?”
— from Notre-Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo - He had assumed a bantering air: a light, half-caressing, half-ironic, shone aslant in his eye.
— from Villette by Charlotte Brontë - But Leonatus was in earnest, and, in spite of the good-natured bantering of the others, he persisted in extolling the charms and excellence of Imogen.
— from The Shakespeare Story-Book by Mary Macleod - "So, Mr. Naturalist," Ned Land continued in a bantering tone, "you'll just keep on believing in the existence of some enormous cetacean . . .
— from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas: An Underwater Tour of the World by Jules Verne
