Research: Dark: The Extended Definition

Dark – adj.

1. Characterized by (absolute or relative) absence of light; devoid of or deficient in light; unilluminated
b. A dark house or room was formerly considered a proper place of confinement for a madman; hence to keep (a person) dark, to keep him confined in a dark room
2. Of clouds, the sky, etc.: Reflecting or transmitting little light; gloomy from lack of light; sombre
3. Of the ordinary colour of an object: Approaching black in hue
b. Of the complexion: The opposite of fair
c. Prefixed, as a qualification, to adjectives of colour: Deep in shade, absorbing more light than it reflects; the opposite of light
4. Characterized by absence of moral or spiritual light; evil, wicked; also, in a stronger sense, characterized by a turpitude of wickedness of sombre or unrelieved nature; foul, iniquitous, atrocious
5. Devoid of that which brightens or cheers; gloomy, cheerless, dismal, sad
b. Of a person’s disposition, etc.: Gloomy, sullen, sad
c. Of a person’s countenance: Clouded with anger or dislike, frowning
6. Obscure in meaning, hard to understand
b. Obscure in name or fame; little known or regarded
c. Obscure to ‘the mind’s eye,’ or to memory; indistinct, indiscernible
7. Hidden from view or knowledge; concealed, secret
b. Of a person: Secret; silent as to any matter; reticent, not open, that conceals his thoughts and designs
8. Of whom or which nothing is generally known; about whose powers, etc., the public are ‘in the dark’
10. Void of intellectual light, mentally or spiritually blind; unenlightened, uniformed, destitute of knowledge, ignorant
11. Sometimes two or more fig. sense are combined as in the Dark Continent
12. quasi-adv a. In a dark manner, darkly

(Oxford English Dictionary: 1920s—according to Librarian)

Synonyms: adj - darkened, darkling, darksome, dim, dusky, gloomy, murky, obscure, pitch-black, pitch-dark, somber (or sombre) (Merriam-Webster)

Antonyms: adj - beaming, effulgent, glowing, lambent, radiant, shining; glossy, lustrous,


The use of the word dark suggests possibility, chaos, and as a result, fear. It calls up on the natural instinct inherent in all humans and animals alike, the eyes wide open in the black of night, that forbidding obscurity which causes us to pull our senses together, lest the shadow of infinite shape reaches and touches our hearts. Instead of meaning simply the opposite of light, the word dark has a level of primal and instinctive significance, always standing in our eyes and the eyes of our ancestors as the unknown, which in our ignorance, holds power over us.

What is dark, then? It’s the shadow caused by the slant of the sun against a building, creating a blind spot filled with the absence of light. But it isn’t just simply a shadow, hiding what our eyes cannot see; the image of that building’s shadow, the sun’s blind spot, is the abode of where our imagination is seeded and festers into fearsome growths. It’s almost like a grammar question: fill in the blank. And what could be put in there is put in there. Well, there’s a slim chance that whatever it is might be there. But, who knows? You can’t tell. It hides underneath that cover of darkness. It could be anything, from Freddy to a bloodthirsty animal. And that uncertainty is contrary to what makes us comfortable. The possibility of anything in that dark recess does not give a clue as to what to expect from it. It only tells us with its bold silence that we don’t know. And in doing so, it robs us of our ability to exert control. Perhaps this time our fears will substantiate from that darkness...

Often, the form of fear which finds itself in the darkness is death. In a discussion with a peer, he said that dark resembled to him as a place of “scary things,” and another said that dark resembled “evil,” while another said dark brought to mind “the nighttime.” These responses seem to land near the assumption that whatever is in that nighttime is malevolent and threatens us. In “An Old Man’s Winter Night” by Robert Frost, “all out of doors looked darkly” at the old man of the story, as if vying to be the first to lay claim to his soul (Line 1). In this context, dark suggests the impending death of the old man brought by old age. Whatever form or shape “all out of doors” took, it was essentially going to be something that would steal the life out of the old man, whether it is the cold, the hostile woods, or time itself.

Though—after thinking about it, it seems absurd that if one is walking in the night that everything is watching you, that the things you pass by are offended by your daytime loudness and seek revenge with silent hatred. Or perhaps, is that the case?