Literary notes about bean (AI summary)
The word "bean" appears in literature with a remarkable versatility, functioning both as a literal reference and as a symbolic or descriptive device. In technical and botanical contexts, it is meticulously detailed in terms of size, color, and flavor—for instance, the precise classifications found in discussions of coffee [1], [2], [3]—while its use in proverbs and folklore underscores metaphorical meanings that evoke growth or rarity [4], [5]. Additionally, "bean" serves as a surname that helps characterize individuals, contributing to moments of dry humor or evocative imagery, as seen with figures like Mrs. Bean or Jimmy Bean [6], [7], [8]. This breadth of usage illustrates how the term is not confined to a single domain but is interwoven into varied narrative textures across genres.
- Kediri, t & m n Small hard bean; good drinker.
— from All About Coffee by William H. Ukers - All Hawaiian coffee is high grade; and is generally large bean, blue-green in color when new crop, and yellow-brown when aged.
— from All About Coffee by William H. Ukers - Even when packed in the best containers, age shows to a disadvantage on the roasted bean.
— from All About Coffee by William H. Ukers - For the affection of young ladies is of as rapid growth as Jack's bean-stalk, and reaches up to the sky in a night.
— from Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray - That’s as much as a bean in a brewing copper.
— from A Polyglot of Foreign Proverbs - He manfully held his burden until Mrs. Tinneray and Mrs. Bean relieved him.
— from The Best Short Stories of 1917, and the Yearbook of the American Short Story - "Don't your cousin Hetty live over to Chadwick's Harbor," inquired Mrs. Bean, "and don't this boat-ride stop there to take on more folks?"
— from The Best Short Stories of 1917, and the Yearbook of the American Short Story - Mrs. Bean, preparing to wash her hands, removed her black skirt and pinned a towel around her waist.
— from The Best Short Stories of 1917, and the Yearbook of the American Short Story
