Literary notes about adopt (AI summary)
The word "adopt" in literature serves as a versatile term that illustrates both literal and metaphorical forms of acceptance and change. At times, it denotes the physical act of taking someone or something into one's realm, such as when a character chooses to welcome a child into their care [1, 2, 3]. In other instances, it reflects the conscious decision to embrace particular ideas, manners, or policies—from assuming a distinct mode of dress and speech for sociological effect [4] to accepting new hypotheses in philosophy and science [5, 6, 7]. Authors also use "adopt" to signal the acceptance of an attitude or course of action, whether in personal behavior or in response to societal norms [8, 9, 10]. This range of applications reinforces the dynamic and transformative quality of the term within literary discourse.
- "In that case," she said to herself, with an admiring glance at the lovely little boy, "I shall have to adopt him, I think!
— from A True Friend: A Novel by Adeline Sergeant - The childless old lady had offered to adopt one of the girls when the troubles came, and was much offended because her offer was declined.
— from Little Women; Or, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy by Louisa May Alcott - Put the case that, at the same time he held a trust to find a child for an eccentric rich lady to adopt and bring up.”
— from Great Expectations by Charles Dickens - The simplest and most effective way to achieve this is to adopt a peculiar form of dress and speech.
— from Introduction to the Science of Sociology by E. W. Burgess and Robert Ezra Park - Those faiths will best stand the test which adopt also his hypotheses, and make them integral elements of their own.
— from The Will to Believe, and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy by William James - We come to adopt scientific hypotheses, at least in certain provinces of our thought, and we lose our primitive openness and simplicity of mind.
— from The Life of Reason: The Phases of Human Progress by George Santayana - And, now, France; you adopt the foreign custom, So that public shops, one after the other, are opened for Drinking Coffee.
— from All About Coffee by William H. Ukers - Giry ventured to adopt an attitude that was positively threatening.
— from The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux - I say, theoretically this is the best plan to adopt.
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - We detained the monarch himself in prison, and continually admonished him to abolish his gods and adopt ours in their stead.
— from The Memoirs of the Conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo, Vol 1 (of 2) by Bernal Díaz del Castillo
