Literary notes about Usefulness (AI summary)
Literature employs the term "usefulness" to capture a wide spectrum of values—ranging from the pragmatic to the moral and even the aesthetic. In certain works, it is deployed as a measure of social or institutional contribution, as seen when a group’s collective role is appraised in terms of its utility to "the race" ([1]) or when the functional integrity of an institution is linked to its perceived benefit ([2]). In other texts, the word underscores practical benefits, such as the concrete worth of puzzles ([3]) or the shelter offered by harbors ([4]). It also emerges in discussions about personal purpose and self-worth, highlighting how one’s contributions in various fields, like professional service or creative endeavor, are intertwined with their usefulness in society ([5], [6]). This varied application reflects a literary fascination with the interplay between functionality, morality, and individual merit.
- They are all Jewish, and all of equal honor and usefulness to "the race."
— from The International Jew : The World's Foremost Problem by Anonymous - If sanctioned by silence or impunity, it would bring discredit on the institution, and tend to impair its usefulness.
— from The Principles of Masonic Law by Albert Gallatin Mackey - The practical usefulness of puzzles is a point that we are liable to overlook.
— from Amusements in Mathematics by Henry Ernest Dudeney - The subject of the usefulness of harbours is one which I must not omit, but must explain by what means ships are sheltered in them from storms.
— from The Ten Books on Architecture by Vitruvius Pollio - Here was a career of usefulness opened before me!
— from The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins - When my prospects of usefulness are dark, I look to my Lord, and say, 'Thy grace is sufficient for me; Thy strength is made perfect in my weakness.'
— from Some Jewish Witnesses For Christ by Aaron Bernstein
