Literary notes about grotesque (AI summary)
Writers employ the term “grotesque” in multifaceted ways to evoke images that range from the bizarrely deformed to the absurdly humorous. It often denotes physical distortion or an uncanny appearance—as when nature or human features are rendered in a way that blurs the line between horror and humor ([1], [2]). At times, it is used introspectively, emphasizing a character’s self-awareness of their own distorted persona ([3]), while in other passages it highlights an absurd quality in social behavior or established institutions, critiquing familiar forms by exaggerating them to the point of caricature ([4]). In each instance, the word serves as a powerful tool to challenge aesthetic norms and engage the reader in a complex dialogue between the tragic and the ludicrous.
- Before me, squatting together upon the fungoid ruins of a huge fallen tree and still unaware of my approach, were three grotesque human figures.
— from The island of Doctor Moreau by H. G. Wells - Their fat, broad faces, their squashed noses, and frequently oblique eyes, make them appear quaint and grotesque rather than impressively savage.
— from Argonauts of the Western Pacific by Bronislaw Malinowski - Of all possible objects I was the most grotesque.
— from De Profundis by Oscar Wilde - It was another of my surreptitious schemes for extinguishing knighthood by making it grotesque and absurd.
— from A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain
