Literary notes about rumination (AI summary)
The word "rumination" in literature carries a fascinating double meaning. On one hand, it describes the literal process of re-chewing and digesting food in ruminants, emphasizing natural, almost mechanical, acts of completion ([1], [2], [3]). On the other, it lends itself to the depiction of deep, often reflective thought. Writers use it to evoke quiet introspection or prolonged musing, as when a character retreats into a state of reflective silence or contemplates the fundamental nature of his existence ([4], [5], [6]). This seamless interweaving of physical and mental processes enriches its literary significance, allowing authors to explore themes of inner conflict, serenity, and renewal within a single evocative term.
- These have all the typical organs of rumination and digestion, and they consist of the goats, sheep, antelope, oxen, and buffalos.
— from Natural History of the Mammalia of India and Ceylon by Robert Armitage Sterndale - The first mastication in the ox is three times quicker than in horses, but the process of rumination is slow and thorough.
— from Common Diseases of Farm Animals by Robert Alexander Craig - In quadrupeds the deficiency of teeth is usually compensated by the faculty of rumination.
— from The Reason Why A Careful Collection of Many Hundreds of Reasons for Things Which, Though Generally Believed, Are Imperfectly Understood by Robert Kemp Philp - What man of honour needs a moment’s rumination to discover what nature has so inerasibly planted in his bosom,—the sense of right and wrong?
— from The Real Shelley. New Views of the Poet's Life. Vol. 1 (of 2) by John Cordy Jeaffreson - He then cast down his eyes, and appeared to plunge into profound rumination.
— from The Mysteries of London, v. 2/4 by George W. M. (George William MacArthur) Reynolds - He remained in this state of empty and peaceful rumination until he heard the clock tower strike three in the morning.
— from Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
