Literary notes about bequeath (AI summary)
Throughout literature, “bequeath” is employed as a powerful verb that conveys the deliberate act of passing on not only tangible possessions but also intangible qualities or legacies. It frequently appears in situations where characters transfer estates, personal attributes, or even abstract gifts—suggesting a deep connection between the past, present, and future. For instance, it is used in legal and formal contexts to denote the transfer of physical property or rights ([1], [2]), while simultaneously, poets and novelists adopt it to evoke themes of memory, identity, and continuity by leaving behind personal traits or emotions ([3], [4]). In epic and dramatic works, “bequeath” elevates the act of legacy, linking the fate of individuals to that of their descendants or society as a whole ([5], [6]). This versatile usage underscores the term’s significance as a symbol of enduring influence and the transmission of both material and spiritual wealth.
- I beg you to accept such portion of my estate as I bequeath to you, and be satisfied with it, though it is very inadequate to your desert.”
— from Essays of Michel de Montaigne — Complete by Michel de Montaigne - The estate which I have at Stagira, I give to Callinus, and all my books I bequeath to Neleus.
— from The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers by Diogenes Laertius - (I bequeath them to you my children, I tell them to you, for reasons, O bridegroom and bride.)
— from Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman - I bequeath myself to the dirt to grow from the grass I love, If you want me again look for me under your boot-soles.
— from Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman - Their lives for godlike freedom they bequeath, And crowd each other to be first in death.
— from The Aeneid by Virgil - Consummatum est; this bill is ended, And Faustus hath bequeath'd his soul to Lucifer.
— from The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe
