Literary notes about topography (AI summary)
Literary usage of the term “topography” extends well beyond simple physical description. In historical narratives, it is employed to precisely detail battlegrounds and landscapes, as seen when Grant vividly lays out the situation of armies and the country’s physical features [1]. Scholars and authors also use the term in an academic sense, referring to systematic surveys and course descriptions, which underscores its technical role in explaining a locale’s structure [2][3]. In more imaginative contexts, topography becomes a metaphor for the inner workings of memory and perception, with characters organizing the spaces around them in their minds [4][5][6]. Moreover, the word serves as a bridge between tangible geography and abstract narrative, linking physical settings to the historical and moral contours of a story [7][8][9]. This versatility allows writers to evoke atmosphere, strategic depth, and emotional resonance all in one succinct term.
- He explained the situation of the two armies and the topography of the country so plainly that I could see it without an inspection.
— from Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant, Complete by Ulysses S. Grant - By the Professor of Topography, 1 Execution of the second reconnaissance plan ( memoire ,) (1 lecture.)
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - The studies for the first division during the second year of their residence consist of— 10 lectures in topography.
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - Revolving all this in her mind, she cast her eyes around her, and arranged the topography of the garden in her head.
— from The three musketeers by Alexandre Dumas and Auguste Maquet - TOPOGRAPHY 417 of the country in his imagination.
— from Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll - Lastly, he threw around him a comprehensive glance (as though to fix in his mind the general topography of the place) and betook himself home.
— from Dead Souls by Nikolai Vasilevich Gogol - In the first place, the topography of different countries is very various.
— from The Art of War by baron de Antoine Henri Jomini - To understand my story a knowledge of the topography of the district is necessary.
— from The Histories of Polybius, Vol. 1 (of 2) by Polybius - if we only had some one to instruct us about the physical and moral topography of this castle.
— from Twenty years after by Alexandre Dumas and Auguste Maquet
