Literary notes about matters (AI summary)
In literature, the term "matters" is remarkably versatile, serving as a placeholder for everything from trivial concerns to issues of life-altering importance. For instance, it appears in light, everyday observations—Austen’s mention of “little matters” that suit a character’s penchant for gossip [1]—while simultaneously being used to denote serious public and personal affairs, as seen in discussions of professional ethics [2] or religious convictions [3]. At times, the word underscores a shift in narrative or the progression of events, whether it’s hastening the unfolding of a mystery [4] or conveying the inevitability of fate ([5, 6]). Even within realms of opinion versus fact, "matters" demonstrates its ambiguity—sometimes suggesting that outcomes are insignificant ([7, 8]) and at other times asserting that “what matters” is precisely the core truth of a situation ([9, 10]). This range illustrates how authors across centuries have employed the term to capture both mundane details and critical turning points in human affairs.
- She was a great talker upon little matters, which exactly suited Mr. Woodhouse, full of trivial communications and harmless gossip.
— from Emma by Jane Austen - I am aware, Mr. Holmes, that you take a very high line in professional matters, and that you are prepared to work for the work’s sake.
— from The Return of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle - He is faithful in his religious duties and respects the convictions of others in matters of custom and religion.
— from Boy Scouts Handbook by Boy Scouts of America - This circumstance hastened matters.
— from Best Russian Short Stories - It is simply the feeling that what happens to such a being does not matter; all that matters is what she is.
— from Shakespearean Tragedy: Lectures on Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth by A. C. Bradley - You are bringing matters to a head.
— from The Lani People by Jesse F. Bone - What they said matters little.
— from The Luck of Roaring Camp and Other Tales by Bret Harte - “O Peter, you know it matters.”
— from Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie - What matters is the fact that, under different circumstances, their approval could have been taken as a foregone conclusion.
— from Dead Souls by Nikolai Vasilevich Gogol - Everything matters.”
— from The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie