Literary notes about Reign (AI summary)
The word "reign" often serves as a marker for a defined period of authority or influence, whether literal or symbolic, in literature. It is used to denote the tenure of rulers in historical accounts, as can be seen in descriptions of emperors or kings, where the focus lies on the duration and impact of their governance, such as in the narratives of Valentinian [1] and Joakim [2]. In other instances, the term transcends the mere recording of dates and becomes a metaphor for dominant eras or prevailing moods, whether in religious texts [3] or in poetic invocations that blend political control with aesthetic or moral overtones [4]. This versatility highlights "reign" not only as a chronological designation but also as a literary device to evoke the spirit and legacy of an epoch.
- Valentinian was about fifty-four years of age; and he wanted only one hundred days to accomplish the twelve years of his reign.
— from The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon - Joakim was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem: and he did evil before the Lord his God.
— from The Bible, Douay-Rheims, Complete - many enemies rage, and the whole earth be stirred up to oppose the reign of Christ, he shall still prevail.
— from The Bible, Douay-Rheims, Complete - Keep still possession of thy gloomy place, That all the faults which in thy reign are made, May likewise be sepulchred in thy shade!
— from The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare
