Literary notes about Mesmerized (AI summary)
In literature, "mesmerized" frequently conveys a state of deep, almost hypnotic captivation, whether caused by a bewitching presence, an unsettling force, or an inner turmoil. Authors use it to describe characters who are so absorbed that they seem detached from reality—for instance, a quiet, enchanted observation of a musician's approach ([1]) or a sudden, awe-stricken gaze toward an extraordinary sight ([2], [3]). At times, the term blends the literal with the metaphorical, suggesting not only physical stillness or paralysis ([4], [5]) but also a transformation of perception, where even nature or inanimate objects take on an almost magical quality ([6], [7]). This multifaceted usage highlights how strongly human minds can be swayed by both beauty and terror, from the entrancing power of a voice ([8], [9]) to the controlled influence exerted by a dominating will ([10], [11]).
- I sat preternaturally still, and watched, as if mesmerized, the approach of the musician.
— from The First ViolinA Novel by Jessie Fothergill - Eeny looked timidly up, and was mesmerized at one glance.
— from Kate Danton, or, Captain Danton's Daughters: A Novel by May Agnes Fleming - She was for the moment, so to speak, mesmerized by his superior mind.
— from Black Diamonds: A Novel by Mór Jókai - The truth was, and I felt sure of it as I rode along, I was partly mesmerized or hypnotized, whatever men may please to call it.
— from The Weapons of Mystery by Joseph Hocking - He felt as if he had been mesmerized; as if he could neither move nor speak.
— from The Borough Treasurer by J. S. (Joseph Smith) Fletcher - Mesmerized subjects do not see the objects or people in the room, or hear any noise whatever except the voice of the operator.
— from Buchanan's Journal of Man, January 1888Volume 1, Number 12 - Slowly but surely the mesmerized metal turned in the direction.
— from Leo the Circus Boy; or, Life under the great white canvas by Edward Stratemeyer - Read Poe's account of the voice that came from the mesmerized dying man, and you will realize less than one-half of the horror of that head's voice.
— from The Works of Rudyard Kipling: One Volume Edition by Rudyard Kipling - I was conjured, I was mesmerized by his music.
— from Gov. Bob. Taylor's Tales "The fiddle and the bow," "The paradise of fools," "Visions and dreams" by Robt. L. (Robert Love) Taylor - This is abundantly proved by the experiments of Wilson, who, as early as 1839, mesmerized elephants, horses, wolves, and other animals in London.
— from The Law of Psychic Phenomena A working hypothesis for the systematic study of hypnotism, spiritism, mental therapeutics, etc. by Thomson Jay Hudson - As if mesmerized by the intensity of this remarkable young reformer, the lawyer found himself repeating, "I wonder!"
— from Ten American Girls from History by Kate Dickinson Sweetser
