Literary notes about FORMAL (AI summary)
The word "formal" in literature is used to evoke a sense of officiality, structure, and adherence to established conventions across vastly different contexts. In some texts, it emphasizes ceremonial or legal procedures—such as a “formal admission” to a lodge ([1]), the issuance of a “formal Declaration of Independence” ([2]), and even the precise language found in legal or scholarly writing ([3], [4]). In social settings, "formal" describes the expected etiquette and regimentation of events like dinners, where specific codes and manners are observed ([5], [6], [7]). The term also appears in discussions of language and thought, where it contrasts with informal expression or spontaneous ideas, indicating a measured, deliberate style ([8], [9], [10]). Thus, whether managing state affairs, narrating social interactions, or exploring intellectual rigor, "formal" serves as a marker of order and decorum within literary works.
- It is probable that Weishaupt was in touch with this secret chapter before his formal admission to the lodge.
— from Secret societies and subversive movements by Nesta Helen Webster - Two days later, on June 18th, Aguinaldo issued his first formal Declaration of Independence.
— from The American Occupation of the Philippines 1898-1912 by James H. Blount - It is only a formal analogy, but it does not lack a deeper basis.
— from A General Introduction to Psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud - In very formal or exact language a verb-phrase with shall may be used in the if -clause: as,—“If it shall rain to-morrow, I shall not go.”
— from An Advanced English Grammar with Exercises by Frank Edgar Farley and George Lyman Kittredge - Some people love highly flavored Spanish or Indian dishes, but they are not appropriate for a formal dinner.
— from Etiquette by Emily Post - But at formal dinners, dishes are never passed twice, and are therefore taken direct to the pantry after being passed.
— from Etiquette by Emily Post - At all formal dinners, place cards being on the table, the hostess does not direct people where to sit.
— from Etiquette by Emily Post - It was only when he was alone that he permitted himself the indulgence of more formal language.
— from The Gay Cockade by Temple Bailey - This is, of course, simply a more formal way of saying that "men die."
— from Introduction to the Science of Sociology by E. W. Burgess and Robert Ezra Park - The same proposition, if it were false, would have a less simple formal relation to its objective.
— from The Analysis of Mind by Bertrand Russell
