Both Uses of
initiate
in
Man And Superman
- We laugh at the haughty American nation because it makes the negro clean its boots and then proves the moral and physical inferiority of the negro by the fact that he is a shoeblack; but we ourselves throw the whole drudgery of creation on one sex, and then imply that no female of any womanliness or delicacy would initiate any effort in that direction.†
Chpt Ded. *
- But I know, and the whole world really knows, though it dare not say so, that you were right to follow your instinct; that vitality and bravery are the greatest qualities a woman can have, and motherhood her solemn initiation into womanhood; and that the fact of your not being legally married matters not one scrap either to your own worth or to our real regard for you.†
Chpt 1 *
Definitions:
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(initiate as in: initiate into the fraternity) to accept someone's membership into an organization -- typically in a ceremony -- sometimes including a period of instruction and/or test
-
(initiate as in: initiate discussions) to cause (something) to begin