Literary notes about deity (AI summary)
In literature the term "deity" is employed in a variety of nuanced ways ranging from the embodiment of a formidable, almost secretive power [1] to an abstract representation of a cosmic creator who does not literally bring things into being [2]. Authors often use the word to denote both a personal, anthropomorphic divinity and broader, symbolic forces that imbue nature and society with sacred qualities [3]. Whether the reference is subtle or grandiose, the term frequently appears with a sense of capitalized reverence, revealing layers of mythological tradition and philosophical inquiry that underscore its complex role in cultural narratives [4].
- There was a people that had a chief temple, wherein dwelt a bloodthirsty deity, behind a curtain, guarded by priests.
— from Best Russian Short Stories - I mean to say that the Deity does not create. OINOS.
— from The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, The Raven Edition by Edgar Allan Poe - This He is, because He is the very image of the Invisible God, because in Him dwells the plenitude of Deity.
— from St. Paul's Epistles to the Colossians and Philemon by J. B. Lightfoot - Personal pronouns referring to the Deity are often capitalized.
— from An Advanced English Grammar with Exercises by Frank Edgar Farley and George Lyman Kittredge
