Literary notes about Contusion (AI summary)
The term "contusion" in literature is used to describe blunt injuries that result in bruising beneath the skin, offering a detailed, almost clinical depiction of physical trauma. Its usage distinguishes between more severe fractures and softer, yet often painful, injuries—for instance, a violent head impact or a mild incident that leaves little mark ([1], [2], [3]). Authors often employ the word to amplify the realism of battle wounds or accidental mishaps, lending a sense of severity and immediacy to the narrative, whether recounting a heroic struggle or a personal misfortune ([4], [5]). Such precise language not only paints a vivid anatomical picture but also subtly underscores the emotional and dramatic weight of the scene ([6], [7]).
- He has no wound, only a bad contusion of the head, caused, apparently, by his fall.
— from The Works of Balzac: A linked index to all Project Gutenberg editions by Honoré de Balzac - “There is no fracture,” said he, at last, “but a contusion—a violent contusion.
— from The Romany Ryea sequel to "Lavengro" by George Borrow - His face was black, and there was a frightful contusion on the side of his head.
— from The Anti-Slavery Examiner, Part 2 of 4 by American Anti-Slavery Society - The head had received a severe contusion, but he had seen greater injuries recovered from: he was by no means hopeless; he spoke cheerfully.
— from Persuasion by Jane Austen - "His Lordship had lost his right eye by a contusion which he received at the siege of Calvi, in the island of Corsica.
— from The Life of Nelson, Volume 2 The Embodiment of the Sea Power of Great Britain by A. T. (Alfred Thayer) Mahan - There was both contusion and suffusion of the brain.
— from Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea by Jules Verne - The contusion, or rather the contused wound appeared,—an oval below the chest between the third and fourth ribs.
— from The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne
