Literary notes about ware (AI summary)
Throughout literary history, "ware" has appeared with diverse meanings. In some works it denotes manufactured goods such as pottery, porcelain, and earthenware, evoking tangible artifacts and material culture ([1], [2], [3], [4]). In other contexts, particularly in older texts or poetic expressions, it functions as a cautionary term—short for "beware" or "take heed"—guiding characters to be alert or mindful of dangers or significant occurrences ([5], [6], [7], [8], [9]). Its adaptability even extends to place names or designations in specific narratives, underscoring the word’s rich versatility in literature.
- marble, bronze, terra cotta[Sp], papier-mache; ceramic ware, pottery, porcelain, china, earthenware; cloisonne, enamel, faience, Laocoon, satsuma.
— from Roget's Thesaurus by Peter Mark Roget - Among the oyster-shells were mixed many fragments of ancient, broken crockery ware.
— from The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain - On Monday I had the pleasure of receiving, unpacking, and approving our Wedgwood ware.
— from The Letters of Jane Austen by Jane Austen - Far better have stone-ware plates that are good in design than expensive porcelain that is horrible in decoration.
— from Etiquette by Emily Post - Ware , v. Beware of; take heed to. Arch.
— from The Devil is an Ass by Ben Jonson - Straightway I was ’ware, So weeping, how a mystic Shape did move Behind me, and drew me backward by the hair;
— from Sonnets from the Portuguese by Elizabeth Barrett Browning - “’Ware thy tongue, friend: belike he is dangerous!”
— from The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain - I should have been more strange, I must confess, But that thou overheard'st, ere I was ware, My true-love passion.
— from The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare - Thou speak'st wiser than thou art ware of.
— from The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare
