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Literary notes about Distinction (AI summary)

In literature, the term "distinction" takes on multiple roles, being used both to denote honor and to mark subtle differences. Writers often employ it as a way of celebrating notable personal or social achievements—as when a character’s singular quality is remembered with pride ([1], [2], [3])—while in more analytical or philosophical works it serves to delineate precise conceptual boundaries between ideas or categories ([4], [5], [6]). The word also appears in contexts where it distinguishes status or function, emphasizing differences that are critical to understanding societal roles or the trajectory of an argument ([7], [8], [9]). Thus, across narratives and treatises alike, "distinction" operates as a versatile marker that both honors individual excellence and clarifies the fine lines separating thought, identity, and circumstance.
  1. It was Selden's distinction that he had never forgotten the way out.
    — from The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton
  2. I confess, I then envied him this mighty privilege, of which he seemed so proud; but it was not long before I obtained the same mark of distinction.
    — from Boswell's Life of Johnson by James Boswell
  3. Job’s distinction was an absolute and unprecedented singleness of loyalty to Jehovah.
    — from Demonology and Devil-lore by Moncure Daniel Conway
  4. The distinction between images and sensations might seem at first sight by no means difficult.
    — from The Analysis of Mind by Bertrand Russell
  5. The Sophists are still floundering about the distinction of the real and seeming.
    — from Gorgias by Plato
  6. Few things are more firmly established in popular philosophy than the distinction between mind and matter.
    — from The Analysis of Mind by Bertrand Russell
  7. His eldest son, Mr. James Durand, when, in 1817, member for Halton, enjoyed the distinction of being expelled from the House of Assembly.
    — from Toronto of Old by Henry Scadding
  8. I am far from denying that this is a distinction of peculiar importance.
    — from The Federalist Papers by Alexander Hamilton and John Jay and James Madison
  9. H2 anchor SADDLE-HORSE TRIPS Glacier National Park has the distinction of being the foremost trail park.
    — from Glacier National Park [Montana] by United States. Department of the Interior

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