Literary notes about introspective (AI summary)
In literature, "introspective" is often used to evoke a deep, reflective engagement with one’s inner world. Characters may be portrayed as lost in thought, as when someone’s mind wanders “miles away in an introspective world” [1] or exhibits a “clear, calm, introspective” gaze that suggests quiet self-examination [2]. The term underscores not only the act of looking inward but also hints at a complex interplay of melancholy, solitude, and acute self-awareness, as seen in depictions of individuals whose inner life becomes both a refuge and a trap [3, 4]. Moreover, its utility extends into philosophical discourse and psychological analysis, with writers employing introspective methods to explore the nature and limits of self-knowledge [5, 6]. This multifaceted use allows "introspective" to function as a lens through which authors examine the intricacies of inner life and identity.
- Apparently her thoughts were miles away in an introspective world that was all her own.
— from The Lani People by Jesse F. Bone - Her eyes were as they always had been, clear, calm, introspective.
— from Lucinda by Anthony Hope - I was in danger of becoming absurdly self-centered, almost morbidly introspective.
— from The Nest Builder: A Novel by Beatrice Forbes-Robertson Hale - Billee's one fault was his excessive good nature, while Joe was the very opposite, sour and introspective, with a perpetual snarl and a malignant eye.
— from The call of the wild by Jack London - The only sound grounds on which the infallible veracity of the introspective judgment might be maintained are empirical.
— from The Principles of Psychology, Volume 1 (of 2) by William James - ' Our consciousness of these transitive states is shut up to their own moment—hence one difficulty in introspective psychologizing.
— from The Principles of Psychology, Volume 1 (of 2) by William James
