Both Uses
posterity
in
Faust — translated by Brooks
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The genuine leaves posterity a treasure.†Chpt All * - Merry Person. Posterity! I'm sick of hearing of it;
Supposing I the future age would profit,
Who then would furnish ours with fun?
For it must have it, ripe and mellow;
The presence of a fine young fellow,
Is cheering, too, methinks, to any one.
Whoso can pleasantly communicate,
Will not make war with popular caprices,
For, as the circle waxes great,
The power his word shall wield increases.
Come, then, and let us now a model see,
Let Phantasy with all her various choir,
Sense, reason, passion, sensibility,
But, mark me, folly too! the scene inspire.†Chpt All
Definitions:
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(1)
(posterity) all future generations
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(2)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) More rarely, posterity can refer to the future generations descended from an individual.