Literary notes about Edifying (AI summary)
The term "edifying" in literature typically connotes content that is morally or intellectually instructive, serving to uplift or refine one’s character. It is often used in a spiritual context, as when authors describe discourses or narratives that guide characters toward virtue and self-improvement [1], [2]. Writers also employ the word when referring to moral lessons embedded in social or political observations, suggesting that certain behaviors or narratives, even if laced with irony, contribute to a higher moral understanding [3], [4]. In some texts, "edifying" underscores a deliberate effort to mold ethical awareness, while in others it subtly critiques behavior, thus illustrating the term's nuanced role in promoting reflective thought and communal betterment [5], [6].
- For the perfecting of the saints, for the word of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 4:13.
— from The Bible, Douay-Rheims, Complete - “For instance,” she remarks to a young woman whom she is edifying, “you will have children, God willing.”
— from The Works of Balzac: A linked index to all Project Gutenberg editions by Honoré de Balzac - The rule enforced from the beginning to the end of the chapter is, "Let all things be done unto edifying."
— from History of Woman Suffrage, Volume I - It is quite edifying to hear women speculate upon the worthlessness and the duration of beauty.
— from Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray - To account for the favours bestowed upon him by royalty, many reasons of a not very edifying nature were circulated.
— from My Life — Volume 1 by Richard Wagner - “All this as rational and edifying,” said my antagonist, “and in any case you are an original person.”
— from The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
