Literary notes about yes (AI summary)
The word “yes” plays a multifaceted role in literature, serving not only as a simple affirmation but also as an instrument that reveals character nuances and shifts in tone. In Shakespeare’s work ([1]), for example, “Yes” is used with a sense of continuity and pride, while in Forster’s narrative ([2]) the contrast between “Yes” and “No” underscores internal conflicts and differing perspectives. In terse exchanges such as the one in The Count of Monte Cristo ([3], [4], [5]), the brief “Yes” can encapsulate both reluctant acceptance and decisive confirmation, and in exclamatory moments—as seen in Ibsen ([6], [7]) or Dickens ([8], [9])—its forceful delivery heightens emotion and drama. Across these varied contexts, “yes” emerges as a small word loaded with implication, guiding reader interpretation through its subtle shifts in meaning and intonation.
- Yes, and a gentlewoman's son.
— from The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare - “She says ‘Yes,’ my brother says `No,’ to Ducie Street.
— from Howards End by E. M. Forster - “Today?” “Yes.”
— from The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas and Auguste Maquet - The paralytic motioned “Yes.”
— from The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas and Auguste Maquet - “Possibly,” said Danglars; “was not this murdered man an old galley-slave?” “Yes,” replied the count; “a felon named Caderousse.”
— from The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas and Auguste Maquet - Yes!
— from Ghosts by Henrik Ibsen - Oh yes—yes!
— from Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen - and afterwards "Yes!"
— from Bleak House by Charles Dickens - ‘Yes, he was gone,’ said Quilp, with the same exasperating composure.
— from The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens
