Literary notes about Observation (AI summary)
In literature the term "observation" operates on multiple levels, serving both as a record of tangible sensory data and as a vehicle for broader intellectual inquiry. In narrative moments, it can herald pivotal events or reveal character insight—for instance, a sailor’s acute noticing of a bright, unexpected light that preludes dramatic change ([1]) or a character’s reflective remark establishing personal credibility ([2], [3]). In more analytical or philosophical works, observation is portrayed as the foundation of reason and investigation, from deducing natural processes and social dynamics to validating historical and scientific inquiry ([4], [5], [6]). Thus, across diverse texts the word bridges the empirical with the reflective, highlighting the writer’s commitment to both detail and deeper understanding ([7], [8], [9]).
- As if in reply to the sailor’s observation, a bright light flashed in the darkness, and a cannon-shot was heard.
— from The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne - That were your observation when I broke it off, Pip?”
— from Great Expectations by Charles Dickens - ‘Before I sit down, I wish to make an observation.
— from David Copperfield by Charles Dickens - There is a fine Observation in Aristotle to this purpose, which I have never seen quoted.
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - There is no possibility of reconciling this observation to the notion of original instincts.
— from An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals by David Hume - By observation and analysis of phenomena we penetrate into the interior of nature, and no one can say what progress this knowledge may make in time.
— from The Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant - The present theory is the simple result of all these inferences, each of which seems founded on uniform experience and observation.
— from An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals by David Hume - They derive their origin from a deep religious and contemplative feeling, and also from an observation of curious mental phenomena.
— from Meno by Plato - Another observation made by Gurney seems to prove the possibility of the subject's mind being directly influenced by the operator's.
— from The Will to Believe, and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy by William James
