Literary notes about scurry (AI summary)
The term “scurry” is used to evoke a sense of rapid, often frantic movement in literary works. It frequently describes the swift, skittering motion of small creatures, as in the image of water-beetles moving erratically over a surface ([1]) or a mouse darting away from light ([2]), while also capturing the hurried dispersal of people in moments of alarm or urgency ([3], [4]). In other contexts, “scurry” underscores a burst of activity in both landscapes and human behavior, conveying anything from a playful dash across a field ([5]) to the chaotic clamor of a ship’s deck in action ([6], [7]). The word’s versatility in literature allows it to simultaneously evoke images of delicate, almost imperceptible motions alongside sweeping, dynamic scenes that mirror the unpredictable pace of life in moments of crisis ([8], [9], [10]).
- Big water-beetles with broken legs scurry over the small surface, clambering on the carp, and jumping over the frogs.
— from Project Gutenberg Compilation of Short Stories by Chekhov by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov - There was no sound anywhere, save the quick patter of her own feet on the stairs, and the rapid scurry of a mouse flying from the light.
— from The Second Dandy Chater by Tom Gallon - Presently, the sentry would shout another warning and the people would scurry away, peeking out from behind safe corners.
— from Complete Story of the San Francisco Horror by Richard Linthicum - There was no answer, but the girls heard the old woman scurry away.
— from The Cry at Midnight by Mildred A. (Mildred Augustine) Wirt - Then she would scurry over the fields bringing back life to the fallen plants, and setting everything to rights.
— from Rizal's own story of his life by José Rizal - But then came a scurry and trampling of feet on deck; yells and orders.
— from Plain Mary Smith: A Romance of Red Saunders by Henry Wallace Phillips - A scurry of boots was heard on deck, a quick slamming back of the slide, and down the companionway came John.
— from The Deep Sea's Toll by James B. (James Brendan) Connolly - The very rustling of dresses and scurry of feet overhead told all the house a great calamity had stricken it.
— from A Terrible Temptation: A Story of To-Day by Charles Reade - Thus, many men of courage, he considered, would be obliged to desert the colors and scurry like chickens.
— from The Red Badge of Courage: An Episode of the American Civil War by Stephen Crane - I heard her scurry down the stairs, and then I saw her dart across the yard in her blue dress and vanish through the garden gate.
— from Project Gutenberg Compilation of Short Stories by Chekhov by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov
