Literary notes about rash (AI summary)
In literature, the word "rash" is often used to depict impulsiveness and a lack of forethought that leads characters into trouble or perilous situations. It is employed to describe actions and decisions that are hasty or imprudent, such as when a character is warned against putting his head into danger without thinking ([1]) or when a prayer is deemed so rash that it invites punishment ([2]). Authors use the term to underline the volatile nature of human behavior, whether in recklessly seizing an opportunity ([3]) or in expressing emotions that result in disastrous outcomes ([4]). Through its varied applications—from the retort urging caution in intimate conversations ([5]) to the critical observation of hasty alliances ([6])—the word "rash" serves as a powerful literary device to emphasize the risks inherent in acting on instinct rather than reason.
- ,” said the Jester, “I know thou thinkest me a fool, or thou wouldst not be so rash in putting thy head into my mouth.
— from Ivanhoe: A Romance by Walter Scott - No, that rash prayer would deserve to be punished rather than to be granted.
— from Emile by Jean-Jacques Rousseau - His rash ambition had climbed a height where it was difficult to stand with firmness, and impossible to fall without instant destruction.
— from The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon - A deed so rash had finished all our fate, No mortal forces from the lofty gate Could roll the rock.
— from The Odyssey by Homer - 'Don't be rash, my love,' urged Mrs Boffin.
— from Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens - Our impatience betrays us into rash and foolish alliances which [136] no God attends.
— from Essays by Ralph Waldo Emerson by Ralph Waldo Emerson
