Literary notes about cream (AI summary)
The term "cream" assumes a rich, multifaceted role in literature, shifting seamlessly from concrete culinary reference to abstract metaphor. In some passages it evokes the tangible qualities of food and drink, as seen in detailed recipes and practical instructions for separating or using cream in various dishes ([1], [2], [3]), while in others it embellishes descriptions of elegance and quality, such as in references to "cream-hued" fabrics or the "cream of society" ([4], [5]). It also carries a symbolic resonance, denoting the choicest part or the essence of something, exemplified by expressions like "the cream of the revealed doctrine" ([6]), or serving as a playful, witty remark that reinforces character traits and social commentary ([7]). This versatile word, therefore, becomes a tool for both precise description and nuanced metaphorical meaning throughout literary works.
- To drink the cream of them, being boiled in water, is the best way.
— from The Complete Herbal by Nicholas Culpeper - Huge tubs of cracked ice in which the ice cream containers are buried are already standing in the shade of the areaway or in the back yard.
— from Etiquette by Emily Post - The milk was good for Pavel, who was often sick, and he could make butter by beating sour cream with a wooden spoon.
— from My Ántonia by Willa Cather - Her ample gown is of cream-hued linen, Her grandsons raised the flax, and her grand-daughters spun it with the distaff and the wheel.
— from Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman - In the left corner of the ballroom she saw the cream of society gathered together.
— from Anna Karenina by graf Leo Tolstoy - Of this book, "the cream of the revealed doctrine," {230} we shall hear often again.
— from The Religions of Japan, from the Dawn of History to the Era of Méiji by William Elliot Griffis - "The secret is I don't skimp the cream," he remarked airily.
— from Anne's House of Dreams by L. M. Montgomery
