Literary notes about abstemious (AI summary)
In literature, āabstemiousā is used to evoke a life marked by deliberate self-restraint, especially regarding food and drink. Writers often associate the term with characters noted for their modest, ascetic, or disciplined lifestyle, as seen when it describes both moral fortitude and a lifestyle of simplicity ([1], [2], [3]). At times, the word serves to contrast temperance with indulgence, as in the witty admonitions of Shakespeare where restraint becomes a point of both valor and subtle irony ([4], [5]). Moreover, its deployment can illuminate broader themes, reflecting how a measured life may either commend virtuous behavior or underscore the inherent tensions between austerity and societal excess ([6], [7]).
- Add to this strength and health, as the consequence of this abstemious way of living.
— from Cicero's Tusculan Disputations by Marcus Tullius Cicero - He was a man of abstemious habits and boundless industry, whose courtesy and square dealing made him a favourite.
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - Always an abstemious man, he exercised his usual moderation in eating and drinking; and he was the first to go to bed.
— from Jezebel's Daughter by Wilkie Collins - iā the blood: be more abstemious , 56 Or else, good night your vow!
— from The Tempest by William Shakespeare - Be more abstemious, Or else good night your vow!
— from The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare - Insert a liberal dose of mixed spirits in a normally abstemious man, and he becomes a force.
— from Right Ho, Jeeves by P. G. Wodehouse - Rede was always a sober, abstemious man.
— from Curiosities of Impecuniosity by H. G. Somerville
