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Literary notes about nib (AI summary)

In literature, the word "nib" has been used far beyond its literal meaning as merely the tip of a pen, serving as a metaphor for the style, intensity, and power of writing itself. For example, Dickens employs the term in a playful, idiomatic sense in [1] when he writes, "You are biting the nib off now," suggesting an active engagement with the act of writing. In another passage from Dickens [2], the discussion of a "hard or a soft nib" not only alludes to different types of writing instruments but also subtly hints at variations in emotional tone and approach. Poe, too, contributes to this broader metaphorical landscape in [3], where the blunt nib symbolizes a forceful, perhaps unrefined writing style necessary for expressing "intensities." Finally, in [4] and [5] from suffrage literature, the nib becomes a symbol of influence and truth—the instrument through which ideas consolidate groups and transform a writer’s youthful sympathies into mature recognition. Collectively, these examples illustrate how "nib" has evolved into a multifaceted symbol of literary craft, embodying both the physical tool and the expressive power of the written word.
  1. You are biting the nib off now.’
    — from Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens
  2. ‘Shall it be a hard or a soft nib?’ inquired Nicholas, smiling to prevent himself from laughing outright.
    — from Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens
  3. The matter stands thus: In the first place your writer of intensities must have very black ink, and a very big pen, with a very blunt nib.
    — from The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, The Raven Edition by Edgar Allan Poe
  4. It was said that party was consolidated by the nib of a lady's pen.
    — from History of Woman Suffrage, Volume I
  5. Truths that flowed from the silent nib of my pen in Vermont, had been garnered in a boy's sympathies to yield me a man's welcome and aid in St. Louis.
    — from History of Woman Suffrage, Volume I

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