Literary notes about Distinguish (AI summary)
The term “distinguish” is employed in literature to denote the act of discerning one element from another, whether through subtle observation or deliberate analysis. Authors use it to mark physical differences, as seen when details in a landscape or a character’s appearance become pivotal for understanding the narrative ([1], [2], [3]), while it also serves a conceptual purpose in delineating ideas, such as separating knowledge from error or defining moral dimensions ([4], [5], [6]). Its flexibility is further demonstrated when it is invoked to differentiate identities or historical periods, underscoring unique characteristics that set a subject apart from its peers ([7], [8], [9], [10]). Overall, “distinguish” functions as a literary tool that enhances clarity by inviting readers to recognize and appreciate nuance in both tangible and abstract realms.
- But now his eyes had become so far accustomed to the darkness that he could distinguish the whole of the bed.
— from The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - Look also at the innumerable fish that are swimming in the clear waters, where we can distinguish every pebble that lies at the bottom.
— from Frankenstein; Or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley - I sat charting the country until the sun had set and it was so dark that I could no longer distinguish details.
— from The Lost World by Arthur Conan Doyle - Some of our beliefs turn out to be erroneous, and therefore it becomes necessary to consider how, if at all, we can distinguish knowledge from error.
— from The Problems of Philosophy by Bertrand Russell - He looked down, surprised, over his great spectacles, and said, “Why, it is the faculty which enables us to distinguish good from evil.”
— from The Mysterious Stranger, and Other Stories by Mark Twain - For in this case we can readily distinguish whether the action which agrees with duty is done from duty, or from a selfish view.
— from Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysic of Morals by Immanuel Kant - 1330 Or Suessa Aurunca, to distinguish it from the Volscian city of Suessa Pometia.
— from The Natural History of Pliny, Volume 1 (of 6) by the Elder Pliny - My vanity would be wounded if you refuse to distinguish me from the common herd of operators.
— from The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Complete by Giacomo Casanova - I was ambitious, and longed for an opportunity to distinguish myself.
— from The Luck of Roaring Camp and Other Tales by Bret Harte - "Such were the changes that distinguish the war of 1665 from that of 1652.
— from The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660-1783 by A. T. Mahan
