Literary notes about Recital (AI summary)
In literature, the word "recital" is employed to denote the act of narrating or performing a sequence of events, often imbuing the narrative with a dramatic or formal tone. Authors use it not only to describe a simple recounting of facts, as when characters listen to stories or accounts of past exploits [1], [2], but also to highlight the performative and sometimes ritualistic aspect of narration, as seen in recountings that alternately evoke humor and tension [3], [4]. Its use can range from a casual narration of personal adventures [5] and intimate recollections [6] to a grand, almost ceremonial listing of declarations or events, underpinning the structure of official records [7], [8]. In some narratives, the recital becomes an integral part of the scene, capable of influencing characters’ emotions and actions, whether by engaging a captive audience in royal courts or stirring passionate responses among friends and foes alike [9], [10]. Overall, "recital" functions as a bridge between speech and performance, enriching storytelling by emphasizing both the content of the narrative and the manner in which it is delivered.
- “As for me,” replied Athos to this recital, “I am quite at my ease; it will not be women that will defray the expense of my outfit.”
— from The three musketeers by Alexandre Dumas and Auguste Maquet - “And now,” said Cyrus Harding, as he ended his recital, “a duty remains for us to perform.
— from The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne - ”—“I beseech you,” cried she, “do not run through the odious recital.—Answer me but one question, and I shall be easy.
— from History of Tom Jones, a Foundling by Henry Fielding - The lay was concluded, The gleeman’s recital.
— from Beowulf: An Anglo-Saxon Epic Poem - It was indeed very great, and the recital of my adventures did not astonish them less than my unexpected presence.
— from The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Complete by Giacomo Casanova - It is not without reason that I have been diffuse in the recital of all the circumstances I have been able to recollect.
— from The Confessions of Jean Jacques Rousseau — Complete by Jean-Jacques Rousseau - After him, King Henry I. confirmed the same by his charter to the like effect, the recital whereof I pretermit for brevity.
— from The Survey of London by John Stow - Nothing is more natural nor common than first to use a general phrase, and then to explain and qualify it by a recital of particulars.
— from The Federalist Papers by Alexander Hamilton and John Jay and James Madison - She was not sorry, however, to have the recital of them interrupted by the entrance of the lady from whom they sprung.
— from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen - Then the arrival of Vyasa and recital by him of the glory of Krishna and Arjuna.
— from The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa, Volume 1