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Literary notes about accretion (AI summary)

In literature, the word "accretion" has been employed to evoke imagery of gradual buildup, both in physical and abstract realms. For example, Nearchus uses "accretion" to describe the layer-by-layer formation of earth, emphasizing tangible, geological growth [1]. In a more intellectual vein, Santayana uses the term to illustrate how new predicates naturally accumulate in response to our evolving inquiries about various themes [2]. Meanwhile, Nietzsche discusses accretion in the context of ideals, suggesting that the personal reality built by accumulating values has, over time, been unlearned, leading to a more atheistic perspective [3]. Henry Scadding, on the other hand, applies the idea to the unpredictable, organic development of a city's structure, emphasizing the unintended outcomes of gradual accumulation over successive years [4].
  1. Nearchus, speaking of the accretion of earth formed [Pg 82]
    — from The Geography of Strabo, Volume 3 (of 3) by Strabo
  2. The accretion of new predicates comes in answer to chance questions, questions raised, to be sure, about a given theme.
    — from The Life of Reason: The Phases of Human Progress by George Santayana
  3. The granting of a personal-reality to this accretion of ideals has been unlearned: people have become atheistic.
    — from The Will to Power: An Attempted Transvaluation of All Values. Book I and II by Nietzsche
  4. The irregular grouping of its many parts appears the undesigned result of accretion growing out of the necessities of successive years.
    — from Toronto of Old by Henry Scadding

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