Literary notes about touch (AI summary)
Writers employ the word "touch" with remarkable versatility, using it both in a literal, sensory context and as a metaphor for subtle emotional or conceptual influence. For instance, Dickens uses it to hint at a trace of emotion or skepticism, as in “a touch of distrust” ([1]), while Hawthorne and Hardy extend the term to describe an inner awareness that transcends physical sensation ([2], [3]). In other works, the word conveys a refined quality—a delicate mark or a slight influence—as seen in descriptions of texture or the imperceptible grace of a moment ([4], [5]). Meanwhile, Shakespeare and Homer invoke “touch” to bridge the tangible and the symbolic, suggesting that contact can herald both physical intimacy and a profound, almost sacred connection ([6], [7]).
- 'It would seem, Mr Venus,' observed Wegg, with a touch of distrust, 'that you are flush of friends?'
— from Our Mutual Friend by Charles Dickens - We were aware of each other's presence, not by sight nor sound nor touch, but by an inward consciousness.
— from Twice-told tales by Nathaniel Hawthorne - With a final tug and touch here, and a slight brush there, they let her go; and she was absorbed into the pearly air of the fore-dawn.
— from Tess of the d'Urbervilles: A Pure Woman by Thomas Hardy - Does the earth, like a harp, shiver into songs with the touch of my feet?
— from The gardener by Rabindranath Tagore - Some of the pictures had been painted with so doubtful a touch, and in colors so faint and pale, that the subjects could barely be conjectured.
— from Twice-told tales by Nathaniel Hawthorne - And his kissing is as full of sanctity as the touch of holy bread.
— from The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare - " So spoke the master of the martial art, And touch'd with transport great Atrides' heart.
— from The Iliad by Homer
