As the metaphorical source of knowledge of art and science, it was popularized by a couplet in Alexander Pope's 1711 poem An Essay on Criticism: "A little learning is a dang'rous thing; / Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring."
In his poem "Hugh Selwyn Mauberley", Ezra Pound refers to Pierian "roses" in a critique of the cheap aesthetic of his time, which in his opinion has replaced a true appreciation of art and knowledge: Conduct, on the other hand, the soul "Which the highest cultures have nourished" To Fleet St. where Dr. Johnson flourished;
Sir William Jones (1746–1794) also made reference to "the fam'd Pierian rill" (a brook or rivulet) in his 1763 poem about the origin of chess, "Caissa".
In Dorothy Parker's poem, "The Little Old Lady in Lavender Silk", the narrator reminisces about the scandal that was her "neglect of the waters Pierian" in favor of "the habit of love".
[9] In the 1986 David Cronenberg film The Fly, the protagonist Seth Brundle succumbs to madness and disease as the result of a science experiment.
In the 2018 video game Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Nikolai says "A little learning is a dangerous thing, drink deep or taste not the Pieran Spring, so goes the poem.