Proteus Richard III in the play "Henry VI, Part Three", in which the future usurper boasts: Shakespeare also names one of the main characters of his play "The Two Gentlemen of Verona" Proteus. Inconsistent with his affections, his deceptions have unraveled at the finale of the play as he is brought face-to-face with his friend Valentine and original love Julia: In 1807, William Wordsworth finished his sonnet on the theme of a modernity deadened to Nature, which opens "The world is too much with us", with a sense of nostalgia for the lost richness of a world numinous with deities: In
Proteus (bacterium) Proteus (bacterium) Proteus is a genus of Gram-negative Proteobacteria. "Proteus" bacilli are widely distributed in nature as saprophytes, being found in decomposing animal matter, sewage, manure soil, the mammalian intestine, and human and animal feces. They are opportunistic pathogens, commonly responsible for urinary and septic infections, often nosocomial. Three species—"P. vulgaris", "P. mirabilis", and "P. penneri"—are opportunistic human pathogens. "Proteus" includes pathogens responsible for many human urinary tract infections. "P. mirabilis" causes wound and urinary tract infections. Most strains of "P. mirabilis" are sensitive to ampicillin and cephalosporins. "P. vulgaris" is not sensitive to these antibiotics. However, this organism is