Literary notes about engulf (AI summary)
The word "engulf" is often employed to evoke a sense of overwhelming force in literature, capturing both literal and metaphorical swallows of characters and settings. In some narratives, rising waves or fiery elements physically engulf characters or entire landscapes, heightening tension by depicting an unstoppable natural force ([1], [2], [3]). At other times, the term is used to describe the overwhelming nature of internal emotions—grief, loss, or despair—that seem to consume an individual whole ([4], [5]). Additionally, it serves a broader, more figurative purpose in depicting social or political turmoil, where forces of anarchy or wide-scale societal change are described as engulfing communities or even entire galaxies ([6], [7]).
- Once alone, Drew sank upon the low bed, and permitted the waves of weakness and weariness to engulf him.
— from Joyce of the North Woods by Harriet T. (Harriet Theresa) Comstock - It seemed as though he were being sucked in nearer and nearer to the center of some seething vortex that hungrily sought to engulf him.
— from Doors of the Night by Frank L. (Frank Lucius) Packard - As the high watery walls came rolling in, and, at their highest, tumbled into surf, they looked as if the least would engulf the town.
— from David Copperfield by Charles Dickens - and now you are happy while I—" Grief seemed to engulf her.
— from The Millionaire Baby by Anna Katharine Green - The tide of abandonment that had threatened to engulf him slowly subsided, as he read the quiet pain in her gaze.
— from The Wire Tappers by Arthur Stringer - They shall engulf the believers (stones) and supporters (timbers) in the rising tide of anarchy.
— from Studies in the Scriptures, Volume 7: The Finished Mystery by C. T. (Charles Taze) Russell - If your people burst outside the limits of Sol's system, the contagion of your madness will spread and engulf the galaxy.
— from Shock Treatment by Stanley Mullen
