Literary notes about RASP (AI summary)
The word “rasp” functions as a multifaceted literary tool, often evoking a sense of abrasion, both literally and figuratively. It appears as a tangible object—a coarse file used to smooth surfaces ([1], [2], [3])—while also operating as a powerful auditory image that conveys harshness or tension, as when a bolt is withdrawn with a rasp or when a voice, laden with irritation, cuts through silence ([4], [5], [6]). Moreover, “rasp” sometimes becomes a character’s identifier, lending an air of ruggedness or distinctiveness to figures like Mr. Rasp ([7], [8], [9]). Through these varied applications, the term enriches narrative texture by blurring the lines between physical tool, sound, and personality.
- There are several fine old snuff rasps in the Victoria and Albert Museum, one large rasp measuring 15 in.
— from Chats on Household Curios by Fred. W. (Frederick William) Burgess - Such teeth must also be shortened by the tooth forceps, chisel, tooth saw, or rasp.
— from Special Report on Diseases of the Horse by W. H. (William Heyser) Harbaugh - Rasp , s. A large rough file, commonly used to wear away wood.
— from The Field Book: or, Sports and pastimes of the United Kingdom compiled from the best authorities, ancient and modern by W. H. (William Hamilton) Maxwell - From within there was a noisy yawn, a rustle, the sound of an overturning stool, and, lastly, the rasp of a bolt being withdrawn.
— from The Historical Nights' Entertainment: First Series by Rafael Sabatini - A crow sits on a high cliff above me and caws down at me in a voice like an iron rasp scraping against the stone.
— from Look Back on Happiness by Knut Hamsun - Martin nodded, but felt a rasp of irritation.
— from Martin Eden by Jack London - This gentleman was Mr. Rasp, the baker, who kept two women, a man, and a boy, and did the finest trade in Sunbury.
— from Kit and Kitty: A Story of West Middlesex by R. D. (Richard Doddridge) Blackmore - “Of course it was, stupid,” snarled Rasp, turning on the old sailor fiercely, “but the cartridges wouldn’t go off by themselves, would they?”
— from Dutch the Diver; Or, A Man's Mistake by George Manville Fenn - “And now, Rasp, I want you to go ashore again for me,” said Dutch.
— from Dutch the Diver; Or, A Man's Mistake by George Manville Fenn
