Literary notes about esper (AI summary)
The word "esper" carries a variety of connotations in literature, simultaneously serving as a proper name, a scientific citation, and a verb imbued with emotional or anticipatory nuance. In narrative fiction, it often appears as a character’s name—as with Cousin Esper or the recurring figure Esper Indiman—lending an air of mystery and individual identity to those who bear it ([1], [2], [3]). In scholarly texts, especially within zoological or botanical contexts, "Esper" functions as an abbreviated authority, citing revisions or discoveries in taxonomy ([4], [5]). Meanwhile, in Spanish-language writings, its roots in the verb "esperar" evoke the act of waiting or expecting, deepening the text’s emotional texture ([6], [7]). Moreover, in science-fiction realms, "esper" sometimes denotes individuals with extrasensory abilities, thereby extending its semantic range into the realm of the psychic ([8], [9]).
- "'I'd rather walk along with you, Cousin Esper,' said Estes.
— from The Gates of Chance by Van Tassel Sutphen - Well, it is exactly a year and a day since that eventful afternoon when Esper Indiman's visiting-card was thrust into my unconscious hand.
— from The Gates of Chance by Van Tassel Sutphen - "Mon bel esper," said Osmund Heleigh, very gently, "what is there in all this worthy of your sorrow?
— from Chivalry by James Branch Cabell - The striata differs from Madrepora truncata , Esper.
— from American Journal of Science, Vol. 1. by Various - The Latin specific name was written hyperantus by Linnæus, but Esper corrected this to hyperanthus .
— from The Butterflies of the British Isles by Richard South - Mi amiga esperó noticias un día, y otro, y otro… y un mes, y un año… y la carta no llegaba nunca.
— from Doña Clarines y Mañana de Sol by Serafín Álvarez Quintero - Yo disimulé que estaba libre, y esperé una ocasión para escaparme.
— from Novelas Cortas by Pedro Antonio de Alarcón - I opened the door because I couldn't have played absent to a team consisting of one esper and one telepath.
— from Highways in Hiding by George O. (George Oliver) Smith - " What's the matter, kid, are you an esper?
— from Games by Katherine MacLean