Literary notes about pseudonym (AI summary)
The term "pseudonym" has long served as a versatile literary device, functioning both as a marker of artistic identity and as a means of concealing one's true self. In the works of Rabelais and Stendhal, authors employ pseudonyms—such as Claudio Gallitalo [1] and the specially crafted names for intimate circles [2]—to add layers of humor, ambiguity, or secrecy to their narratives. Similarly, in philosophical and poetic spheres, figures like the writer known as Asmus [3] or the Welsh poet Sion Cent [4] have used pseudonyms to highlight their multifaceted personas. The word's use extends into specialized fields and genres, appearing in titles and scientific contexts as seen in Ukers' work on coffee [5], while in the realm of occult literature and mysticism, figures like Papus [6], Olibrio [7], and Eliphas Lévi [8] have adopted alternate names to craft enigmatic public images. This tradition continues in journalism with Guy de Maupassant’s “Maufrigneuse” [9] and in historical compilations where identities merge, as with Joannes Barbatus in Mandeville’s travels [10]. Even in epistolary forms, as evidenced by Grimm’s Lettres Parisiennes [11] and Edgar Allan Poe’s introspection over the pseudonym “Snob” [12], the practice underscores a dynamic interplay between public persona and private individuality—a practice further exemplified by the mystic transformation of Johannes Scheffler into Angelus Silesius [13].
- The name attached to it, Claudio Gallitalo (Claudius French-Italian) must certainly be a pseudonym.
— from Gargantua and Pantagruel by François Rabelais - To most of his friends he gave a name completely different from their real one, and adopted with each of them a special pseudonym for himself.
— from On Love by Stendhal - He generally wrote under the pseudonym of Asmus , and Schopenhauer often refers to him by this name.]
— from The Essays of Arthur Schopenhauer; Studies in Pessimism by Arthur Schopenhauer - In his native Welsh he confined himself to poetry, and Sion Cent was his Cymric pseudonym.
— from British Goblins: Welsh Folk-lore, Fairy Mythology, Legends and Traditions by Wirt Sikes - " pseudonym q. " quoted v. " vessel, ship Italicized words are either scientific terms or titles of publications.
— from All About Coffee by William H. Ukers - Papus is the pseudonym of Dr. Gérard Encausse.
— from Secret societies and subversive movements by Nesta Helen Webster - He wrote under the pseudonym of 'Olibrio'.
— from The New Gresham Encyclopedia. A to Amide by Various - (Eliphas Lévi was the pseudonym of the celebrated nineteenth-century occultist the Abbé Constant.)
— from Secret societies and subversive movements by Nesta Helen Webster - This story appeared in the Gaulois in November, 1882, under the pseudonym of “Maufrigneuse.”
— from Complete Original Short Stories of Guy De Maupassant by Guy de Maupassant - Barbe, Joannes Barbatus) had chosen to father his compilation on Mandeville, and eventually merged his own identity in that of his pseudonym.
— from The Travels of Sir John Mandeville by Sir John Mandeville - His Lettres Parisiennes were published in 1838 under the pseudonym of Grimm.
— from The New Gresham Encyclopedia. A to Amide by Various - P. S. We are consumed with anxiety to probe the mystery which envelops the evident pseudonym “Snob.”
— from The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, The Raven Edition by Edgar Allan Poe - Angelus Silesius, pseudonym for Johannes Scheffler, a physician and mystic poet of the seventeenth century (1624-77).]
— from The Essays of Arthur Schopenhauer; Counsels and Maxims by Arthur Schopenhauer