Literary notes about Offensive (AI summary)
In literature, "offensive" emerges as a multifaceted term that can denote moral or aesthetic repugnance as well as aggressive action. Authors use it to characterize behavior or appearances that clash with social expectations—as when a character’s demeanor is branded as offensive to good taste or decency ([1], [2])—while others adopt it in strategic contexts to describe active military maneuvers as opposed to defensive stances ([3], [4], [5]). At times, sensory experiences like unpleasant odors or elaborate yet unappealing designs are described as offensive, highlighting the word’s capacity to convey both subjective distaste and objective criticism ([6], [7]). This varied usage reflects how writers engage with cultural norms, interpersonal dynamics, and even warfare to challenge or reinforce the prevailing values of their time.
- 'You are a very offensive fellow sir,' repeated Mr Lammle.
— from Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens - When Miss Brooke was at the tea-table, Sir James came to sit down by her, not having felt her mode of answering him at all offensive.
— from Middlemarch by George Eliot - [25] The letter A in this and other figures of the twelve orders indicates the defensive army, and B the offensive.
— from The Art of War by baron de Antoine Henri Jomini - Buell did cross over that night, and the next day we assumed the offensive and swept the field, thus gaining the battle decisively.
— from Memoirs of General William T. Sherman — Complete by William T. Sherman - It may be passive or active, taking the offensive at times.
— from The Art of War by baron de Antoine Henri Jomini - A toilet may be as offensive to good taste and propriety by being too elaborate, as by being slovenly.
— from The Ladies' Book of Etiquette, and Manual of Politeness by Florence Hartley - A plague rot that base custom, which is an error offensive to Nature!
— from Gargantua and Pantagruel by François Rabelais
