Literary notes about Window (AI summary)
In literature, the word "window" is employed not only as a concrete architectural element but also as a rich symbol that bridges different worlds. Sometimes it marks a dramatic transition or an entrance into peril, as when an imperial command leads to a fatal leap [1] or when characters stealthily close a window to avoid exposure [2]. Other times, windows serve as intimate portals into a character’s inner life—Holmes, for example, loses himself in thought by gazing out at the world [3]—or as a means to connect the confined interior with an expansive, external reality [4, 5]. Whether used to heighten suspense by framing the moment of escape [6] or to provide a serene observation point from which the narrative perspective shifts [7, 8], the window becomes a versatile device. It encapsulates the tension between safety and danger, concealment and revelation, and often invites readers to peer through into realms bothliteral and metaphorical, thereby enriching the narrative with layers of meaning.
- And lastly, when the Emperor in contempt, to show his command of his subjects, did command one to leap from the window down and broke his neck
— from The Diary of Samuel Pepys — Complete by Samuel Pepys - She let me in and closed the window, lest some late passer-by should see me.
— from Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself by Harriet A. Jacobs - Holmes was lost in thought, and once or twice he walked over to the window and stared earnestly out.
— from The Return of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle - Out of the window Isabelle watched the snow glide by in the frosty morning.
— from This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald - The chimneys of Lincoln’s Inn and the western sky beyond are seen through the window.
— from Mrs. Warren's Profession by Bernard Shaw - “There are two ways out of the room,” cried Ferrier; “there is the door, and there is the window.
— from A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle - Gabriel appeared in an upper room, placed his light in the window-bench, and then—knelt down to pray.
— from Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy - Sit by the window, man from Jullundur.
— from Kim by Rudyard Kipling
