Literary notes about Quintet (AI summary)
The term “quintet” in literature has been used in multifaceted ways, shifting between literal musical references and metaphorical labels for groups of five. In Marcel Proust’s work, for instance, the mention of a clarinet quintet creates an atmosphere of refined musical enjoyment [1], while in Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s writings the word carries a more complex, sometimes even ominous connotation—serving not only to denote a musical group but also to label individuals implicated in actions or assigned utilitarian roles, as seen when characters are accused or subtly excluded from the quintet [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [8]. An intriguing deviation appears in a reference from Thomas Jefferson’s text, where “Quintet in Act III” suggests a formal, structural grouping within a theatrical or legislative framework [9]. Together, these examples highlight how “quintet” traverses various genres and narrative purposes, embodying both artistic performance and the dynamics of group identity.
- "I should be so pleased if you would look in, just for a minute, to-morrow evening, to hear a quintet, with the clarinet, by Mozart.
— from Swann's Way by Marcel Proust - “You will be arrested not only as the instigators of the fire, but as a quintet.
— from The possessed : by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - No one even thought of any member of the quintet that day.
— from The possessed : by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - That was why he could not be very tender with the quintet.
— from The possessed : by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - I should have thought it could make no difference to you now whether it’s the only quintet or one of a thousand.”
— from The possessed : by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - You must understand that …” “What, would you join the quintet if I proposed it to you?”
— from The possessed : by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - He did not belong to the quintet; it was supposed that he had some special job of a purely practical character.
— from The possessed : by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - I can’t say whether Madame Virginsky knew anything about the existence of the quintet.
— from The possessed : by Fyodor Dostoyevsky - Servilia 149-152 —Quintet in Act III.
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson
