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Literary notes about Perdition (AI summary)

In literature, perdition is a charged term that appears in varying contexts to denote irreversible ruin, damnation, or moral downfall. In religious texts, it often signifies eternal damnation and the loss of salvation, as seen when the Bible warns of the "son of perdition" [1, 2, 3], while classic authors frequently use it to underscore a character’s tragic fate or the dire consequences of moral error, as in Twain’s satirical portrayals [4, 5, 6] and Shakespeare’s dramatic expressions [7, 8]. At times, perdition becomes a metaphor for the collapse of human aspirations or the descent into chaos, as reflected in the works of Hardy [9], Conrad [10], and Dickens [11]. This multifaceted usage shows how the term transcends its original religious connotations, becoming a powerful literary symbol for both spiritual and worldly destruction.
  1. Let no man deceive you by any means: for unless there come a revolt first, and the man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition A revolt...
    — from The Bible, Douay-Rheims, Complete
  2. 61 Because there should not be sorow vnto their perdition, as there shal be ioy vpon them, to whom saluation is perswaded.
    — from The Bible, Douay-Rheims, Complete
  3. Those whom thou gavest me have I kept: and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition: that the scripture may be fulfilled.
    — from The Bible, Douay-Rheims, Complete
  4. For I knew that except these Mohammedans repented they would go straight to perdition some day.
    — from The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain
  5. “Merlin, the mighty liar and magician, perdition singe him for the weariness he worketh with his one tale!
    — from A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain
  6. Perdition is full of better hotels than the Benton.
    — from The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain
  7. I did so, and take heed on't; Make it a darling like your precious eye; To lose't or give't away were such perdition As nothing else could match.
    — from The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare
  8. Stand here, make a good show on't; this shall end without the perdition of souls.
    — from Twelfth Night; Or, What You Will by William Shakespeare
  9. Four years after, you find me a Christian enthusiast; you then work upon me, perhaps to my complete perdition!
    — from Tess of the d'Urbervilles: A Pure Woman by Thomas Hardy
  10. It's really easier to face bereavement, dishonour, and the perdition of one's soul—than this kind of prolonged hunger.
    — from Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
  11. And in the hopeful meantime, Tom goes to perdition head foremost in his old determined spirit.
    — from Bleak House by Charles Dickens

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