Literary notes about February (AI summary)
The word "February" in literature functions both as a precise temporal marker and a symbol loaded with seasonal atmosphere. In many historical narratives and memoirs, February is used to anchor specific events and dates, as seen in detailed travel journals from Vasco da Gama’s voyage ([1],[2]) and the military recollections of Ulysses S. Grant ([3],[4]). Authors also employ February to evoke a particular mood or setting: Walt Whitman’s evocative remark on a clear February day ([5]) and Shakespeare’s metaphorical reference in describing a “February face” full of storm and frost ([6]). Additionally, in works spanning historical chronicles to fiction—from Napoleon’s personal letters ([7],[8]) to novels such as Mark Twain’s narrative in "Pudd'nhead Wilson" ([9])—the month carries both documentary exactness and a broader symbolic resonance, underscoring its multifaceted use in literary tradition.
- 6.— Lisbon, February 20, 1504.
— from A Journal of the First Voyage of Vasco da Gama 1497-1499 - 2.— Lisbon, February 22, 1501.
— from A Journal of the First Voyage of Vasco da Gama 1497-1499 - Sherman's march was without much incident until he entered Columbia, on the 17th of February.
— from Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant, Complete by Ulysses S. Grant - Before daylight General Smith brought to me the following letter from General Buckner: HEADQUARTERS, FORT DONELSON, February 16, 1862.
— from Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant, Complete by Ulysses S. Grant - (It is late in February, and again extra clear.)
— from Complete Prose Works by Walt Whitman - Why, what’s the matter, That you have such a February face, So full of frost, of storm and cloudiness? CLAUDIO.
— from The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare - February 3rd is the date.
— from Napoleon's Letters to Josephine, 1796-1812 by Emperor of the French Napoleon I - February 8th.
— from Napoleon's Letters to Josephine, 1796-1812 by Emperor of the French Napoleon I - On the 1st of February, 1830, two boy babes were born in his house: one to him, the other to 23 one of his slave girls, Roxana by name.
— from The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson by Mark Twain