All 3 Uses of
preserve
in
Leaves of Grass
- I say I bring thee Muse to-day and here,
All occupations, duties broad and close,
Toil, healthy toil and sweat, endless, without cessation,
The old, old practical burdens, interests, joys,
The family, parentage, childhood, husband and wife,
The house-comforts, the house itself and all its belongings,
Food and its preservation, chemistry applied to it,
Whatever forms the average, strong, complete, sweet-blooded man or
woman, the perfect longeve personality,
And helps its present life to health and happiness, and shapes its soul,
For the eternal real life to come.†Chpt 13 *preservation = the act of protecting something or keeping it as it is
- I Sit and Look Out
I sit and look out upon all the sorrows of the world, and upon all
oppression and shame,
I hear secret convulsive sobs from young men at anguish with
themselves, remorseful after deeds done,
I see in low life the mother misused by her children, dying,
neglected, gaunt, desperate,
I see the wife misused by her husband, I see the treacherous seducer
of young women,
I mark the ranklings of jealousy and unrequited love attempted to be
hid, I see these sights on the earth,
I see the workings of battle, pestilence, tyranny, I see martyrs and
prisoners,
I observe a famine at sea, I observe the sailors casting lots who
shall be kill'd to preserve the l†Chpt 20
- I must copy the story, and send it eastward and westward,
I must preserve that look as it beam'd on you rivers of Brooklyn.†Chpt 21
Definitions:
-
(1)
(preserve as in: preserve the records) to protect something or to keep it as it is
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(2)
(preserve as in: preserve the peaches) to prepare food in a way that keeps it from spoiling
-
(3)
(preserve as in: a wildlife preserve) protected wildlife area
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(4)
(preserve as in: no longer a male preserve) something exclusive to (someone or some group) -- such as an activity or place
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(5)
(preserves as in: mom made preserves) chunks of fruit cooked with sugar (like jam) and sealed (usually in a mason jar) so it will not spoil