Literary notes about Knock (AI summary)
In literature, the word "knock" functions on multiple levels. It often denotes a literal signal of arrival—a door being rapped to announce a visitor or an unfolding event, as seen when a knock foretells unexpected company or pivotal moments ([1], [2], [3]). At the same time, authors employ it figuratively to suggest impact or confrontation, whether it be the forceful assertion of strength in a challenge ([4], [5]) or the opening of one's inner thoughts and barriers ([6]). This dual capacity enriches narratives by balancing tangible action with metaphorical resonance, drawing readers into both the immediate scene and the deeper thematic undercurrents of the text ([7], [8]).
- I wondered if he'd get a knock on the door sometime soon.
— from Little Brother by Cory Doctorow - In the quiet of the morning I heard a knock at my door:
— from A Hundred and Seventy Chinese Poems - I remember when I was a boy—” Just then there was a knock at the front door.
— from The Railway Children by E. Nesbit - That’s where Molly can knock spots off them.
— from Ulysses by James Joyce - Hector shall have a great catch and knock out either of your brains: a’ were as good crack a fusty nut with no kernel.
— from The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare - The main object of teaching is not to explain meanings, but to knock at the door of the mind.
— from My Reminiscences by Rabindranath Tagore - There was a knock at the door; literally, three full knocks and a little one at the end.
— from The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy - Better will be the ecstasy That they have done expecting me, When, night descending, dumb and dark, They hear my unexpected knock.
— from Poems by Emily Dickinson, Three Series, Complete by Emily Dickinson
